Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth has announced enhanced compensation payments for troops injured in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts.

The Press Association reports that an overhaul of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme means that one-off awards for individual injuries could increase by 50 per cent in some cases – and the compensation cap that limits claims to the first three injuries sustained in any one incident will be scrapped.

The current scheme replaced the former War Pensions scheme in 2005 – and the new compensation arrangements will be backdated five years to cover all personnel compensated from that date.

Mr Ainsworth said that the changes were being made to ensure that the compensation scheme for injured personnel was ‘fair and just’.

He added that troops must have confidence that, if injured, they and their families would be ‘fully cared for’ right through their initial treatment to their long-term convalescence.

The compensation payments to the most severely injured members of the forces will also reflect extended retirement ages – and any promotions they might have attained in their careers had they not been injured.

The proposals follow a review of the forces compensation arrangements for injured personnel, which was chaired by the former chief of the defence staff, Admiral Lord Boyce.

Lord Boyce said that the government had committed to honouring the recommendations of the review ‘in full’ – which would mean the UK would have a compensation scheme that compared ‘more than favourably’ with many other countries.

The Ministry of Defence’s tariff system means that the maximum award for the most serious injuries will remain at £570,000. However, the second level will rise from £402,500 to £470,000 – and the third level of compensation from £230,000 to £380,000.

The biggest change, however, will be to the guaranteed lifetime income payment system, based on salary – this will be changed to reflect the average number of promotions the injured party could have expected during his or her career, based on the career progression of colleagues of the same age who are able bodied.

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