Bricket Wood war hero’s father rejects threat of law claim
The Funeral of Captain James Philippson took place on the 26th June 2006 at the St Albans Cathedral. He was killed in an incident in Helmand Province, Southern Afgahnistan on the evening of Sunday 11 June 2006. Captain James Phillippson, 29, was serving with the 7 Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, 16th Air Assault Brigade. - Credit: Headquarters Land Command
The father of a fallen Bricket Wood war hero has rejected a leading think tank’s claim that Britain’s armed forces are under threat from the law as “nonsense”.
In its just released “The Fog of Law” report, the Policy Exchange said recent legal developments had “undermined the armed forces’ ability to operate effectively on the battlefield”.
The number of cases against the Ministry of Defence (MoD) using the Human Rights Act has risen dramatically and in June the Supreme Court ruled that the department can be sued for negligence.
The report suggests a number of possible solutions, including the UK departing from the European Convention on Human Rights during deployment.
But Tony Philippson of St Albans said he was annoyed with such suggestions and dismissed the report as “utter nonsense”.
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His son, Captain Jim Philippson, 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery, died fighting for this country on June 11, 2006, when he was fired upon by the Taliban in a night-time ambush.
Capt Philippson was the first British soldier to be killed in the conflict in Afghanistan, and the fight to extract the truth of what happened that fateful night continues for Tony.
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He is suing the MoD for negligence after Andrew Walker, assistant coroner for Oxfordshire, concluded in February 2008 that British troops were totally outgunned in the battle of June 11, and that it was inexcusable to send soldiers into a combat zone without basic equipment.
Tony said his lawsuit was “on ice at the moment” as witnesses were currently being sought.
