Hundreds of veterans traumatised by antimalaria drug reach £20m settlement with MoD

The Ministry of Defence has reached an out-of-court settlement with hundreds of traumatised veterans after a gruelling nine-year fight over a controversial antimalarial drug. Lariam, which was given to British troops overseas, has been linked to hallucinations, nightmares, mental breakdowns and suicides.

The overall compensation bill for the class action by 450 former service personnel is understood to be around £20 million. Hilary Meredith-Beckham, chair of Hilary Meredith Solicitor who represented the group, said: "After a 9-year legal battle and some very dark moments along the way, I am delighted to confirm that this landmark legal action has now settled out of court."

She added: "This case could have been settled within five years. It was complex involving the causal effects of the tablet on each individual soldier and in fairness we suffered the Covid years in the middle, but nine years is outrageous. "As well as our clients it is the taxpayer who pays the price when the defendant is a government body.

"An insurer would have acted commercially, the government - mainly a Conservative government throughout this case - avoid, prevaricate, hide and delay. As a result, costs run into millions [of pounds]."

A minimum of 17,368 armed forces personnel were prescribed Lariam at least once between 1 April 2007 and 31 March 2015, MoD figures suggested.

It is understood that the settlement includes "gagging clauses" which prevent some information from being made public.

During the litigation, Mrs Meredith-Beckham and her team uncovered that only 5% to 10% of all those who took Lariam actually had an entry in their records.

This means medics were often unaware that the psychotic behaviour they were treating was caused by the controversial anti-malarial drug.

Lariam was first licensed in 1989 and adopted by the UK military from 1991.

Side effects range from confusion to anxiety, nightmares, depression, hallucinations and suicide ideation.

Mrs Meredith-Beckham has called on the Government and MPs on the Defence Select Committee to revisit the original Lariam Inquiry.

She said: "We owe a duty to our armed forces to see that not only justice is done but that morally and ethically we are protecting them as they protect us.

"This legal action has settled and the right compensation has been paid but we still don't know the full story. Powerful people in powerful positions have withheld the truth.

"Ultimately, the MoD didn't want this case to play out in open court and their insistence on a gagging clause is very telling."

An MOD spokesperson said: "The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes the health and welfare of our personnel very seriously, taking every possible precaution to ensure their safety - including protecting them against Malaria, a potentially fatal disease.

"The majority of this case took place under the previous government. Litigation ended in October 2024 when the damages for over 400 claims in relation to the prescription of Lariam many years ago were settled, avoiding a costly and time-consuming trial.

"As any legal professional knows, it is a usual feature of the settlement terms that both parties agree not to publicly disclose the damages awarded to claimants, and to suggest anything otherwise is disingenuous."

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