SERIOUS questions need to be asked of the lawyers who acted for ex-servicemen who lost a bid for compensation for illnesses allegedly caused by exposure to radiation during nuclear weapons tests, it has been claimed.

Thomas Docherty, Labour MP for Dunfermline and West Fife, is to ask Defence Secretary Philip Hammond if the Ministry of Defence is satisfied the legal advice given to the veterans was the best available at the time.

Almost 100 Scottish former nuclear test veterans were among 1000 UK-wide who claimed they fell ill after exposure to radiation during the tests in the 1950s and 1960s. However, the UK Supreme Court ruled it had been too long since the problems had emerged for the claims against the MoD to proceed.

The Herald was told that in 2009 the then Labour Government offered the veterans a £15million settlement, which would have meant each former serviceman receiving up to £10,000. But this was rejected.

Mr Docherty said: "Serious questions have to be raised about the role of the veterans' lawyers. Why, when there was a compensation deal on the table in 2009, did they reject it? Did they give the veterans the best advice? Were the veterans fully aware of what was on offer?"

The veterans took their fight to the Supreme Court in November after battles in the High Court and Court of Appeal. Some 10 "lead" claimants won the first round when a High Court judge said claims could go ahead. But the MoD appealed and, in 2010, a Court of Appeal ruling blocked nine of the 10 claims when judges said they were "statute-barred" because they had been made too late. A challenge against that decision was rejected this week by Supreme Court justices.

The veterans blame ill-health, including cancer, skin defects and fertility problems, on their involvement in British nuclear tests in Australia, on Christmas Island and in the Pacific Ocean between 1952 and 1958.

While this week's decision blocks most claims, some could still proceed because of an earlier legal ruling. Lawyers said the fight for justice would go on and urged the Government to start a compensation scheme.