The Ministry of Defence has acknowledged that a clandestine government facility gathered medical records of nuclear test veterans. These records, comprising up to 50,000 paper files stored in a controlled environment, were amassed by scientists at Porton Down. Despite a two-year investigation into missing medical records of veterans involved in Cold War bomb tests, these files remain unexamined.
Campaigning MP Rebecca Long-Bailey has emphasized the importance of revealing the contents of these records, questioning the reasons for their retention and whether they include the sought-after files that veterans have been seeking for decades. A cross-party group of MPs has written to Defence Secretary Wes Streeting, urging him to delve into this archive as veterans who participated in Britain’s 45 atomic experiments have long lamented the absence of their medical records.
In a groundbreaking discovery in 2022, the Mirror revealed that thousands of veterans underwent blood, urine, and thyroid testing, along with chest x-rays, during their service at weapons trials, despite previous denials. Although a review initiated in 2024 failed to locate most records and speculated that the blood tests might not have been conducted or were destroyed, it identified a warehouse in Swadlincote, Derbyshire, holding 50,000 paper records related to historical radiation exposure, including medical records of at least one atomic serviceman.
The archive, known as UHR ‘DSTL Historic Radiation’, is associated with the Defence Science Technology Laboratory, commonly referred to as Porton Down, a secretive facility conducting classified biological and chemical research. Currently managed by a document storage specialist called Restore, the physical records are complemented by a digital version held by Defence Radiation Protection Services in Gosport, Hampshire.
Despite the merger of DRPS with the Atomic Weapons Establishment in 2020, the responsibility for the files lies with specific permissions from Defence Business Services, the administrative arm of the MoD, hindering access for searches. The lack of clarity on whether the archives will be examined following the review publication has left veterans like John Morris frustrated, urging the MoD to retrieve and disclose any existing medical records.
An MOD spokesperson expressed gratitude towards the individuals involved in the UK’s nuclear testing program and highlighted the comprehensive review commissioned by the government to process a vast number of records. While additional material may surface over time due to the age of the records, the review did not find evidence of intentional concealment and transparently outlined the gaps and limitations within the surviving records.
Efforts to obtain comments from Restore, the current custodian of the records, were made.