A delegation led by Austin Mitchell MP and Nicholas Soames MP, today met the Minister for Veterans, Kevan Jones, to press the case for a Campaign medal for members of Bomber Command.

That case for action was urged in Early Day Motion 218 signed by 209 Members of Parliament which set out the tremendous contribution made by Bomber Command in destroying the Nazi War effort at the cost of 56,000 lives of aircrew, and the loss of 1,500 heavy bombers. The motion urged that in the light of this achievement and the enormous courage of the crews a campaign medal should be issued to those who served in Bomber Command from 1940 to 1945.

The Minister expressed his sympathy for the cause but he warned that campaign medals are not the gift of Ministers but are the responsibility of the Committee on the Grant of Honours Decorations and Medals. The Committee had decided at the end of the War that Bomber Command should not be included in the list of campaigns in the Second World War eligible for medals.

Since the reasons for this decision are now obscure, he agreed with the delegation that the arguments could only be reviewed when the Minutes of the Committee at the time were recovered and assessed. He therefore suggested that he and the delegation should examine the reasons for the decision by meeting again in September to assess whether a new case could be put up, and the omission rectified.

The delegation urged on the Minister that in view of the widespread public demand for a commemorative medal extending much further than the comparatively small number of survivors from this courageous Command, action should not be long delayed so that Bomber Command’s massive contribution to winning the War and defeating Nazism should at least be recognised, however belatedly, by a specific campaign medal.

Photo: Nicholas and Austin Mitchell MP leading a delegation to see the Minister for Veterans, Kevan Jones MP, to press the case for members of Bomber Command