A SWINDON veteran of the first Gulf War has welcomed a landmark ruling suggesting a link between Gulf War Syndrome and the cocktail of vaccinations given to the armed forces before the conflict.

Victims of the condition, said to cause depression, wasting muscles, fatigue and nausea, have been given renewed hope following the case of Alex Izett, 33.

A former lance corporal with the Royal Engineers, he blames his brittle bone disease on drugs he was given during the conflict.

His claim was upheld by the War Pensions Appeal Tribunal.

The 33-year-old, who never actually went to the Gulf, took the same vaccines given to other troops involved in the conflict.

Veteran of the first Gulf War and Swindon representative of the Gulf Veterans' Families Association, Tom Kavanagh, of Courtenay Road, Walcot, has welcomed the ruling.

Father of two Mr Kavanagh, 40, who was a lance corporal with the Royal Corps of Transport, said: "While this is undoubtedly good news, for most people, this is too late.

"The United States has been making a link between the vaccinations and the condition for years. Why has it taken so long for the British to accept this?

"My personal feeling is that the British Government is dragging its heels, because it does not want to open the floodgates to complaints. It could cost them a huge amount of money.

"When I was in the Gulf, I remem-ber we were told to take the drugs or face the prospect of a horrible death.

"We were given a cocktail of untested drugs. I don't know if it had any effect on me, but I do suffer from memory loss. It is impossible to know if that is related to the drugs I was given or not."

The Ministry of Defence has said it will not appeal against the finding, which could have significant implications for hundreds of veter-ans who claim they are suffering from Gulf War Syndrome.

The Co-ordinator of the National Gulf War Veterans' Association, Charles Plumridge, said: "The veterans finally have justice.

"We are calling on the MoD to officially confirm that we are ill because of the inoculations we were given.

"We are also calling on all veterans of the first Gulf War to submit claims for vaccination damage."