The Court of Appeal has today ruled against the MoD and decided that the Human Rights Act does apply to British troops when deployed abroad, even when fighting on the battlefield. The judgement means that the MoD has a legal duty to make sure that troops are supplied with proper equipment.The MoD had appealed against a ruling made in the case case of Pte Jason Smith, who was killed in 2003 in Iraq, that sending soldiers out on patrol or into battle with defective equipment could amount to a breach of their human rights.
The MoD will now be taking their case to the House of Lords.
If it means that the guys on the frontline get the right equipment, that's all to the good..... as long as it doesn't compromise operations in the field.
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