Following his campaign work last year on behalf of a Crawley resident, Henry Smith MP has welcomed the Government’s announcement that World War II war heroes who served on the Arctic Convoys and in Bomber Command will be eligible to receive new recognition.

Families of those who have sadly died will also be able to apply for the new awards in recognition of their loved ones’ bravery. Up to a quarter of a million veterans and families could be eligible for the awards.

Production of the new Arctic Star medal and Bomber Command clasp will start this week and living veterans and widows will be the first in line to receive the new awards from as early as March.

Henry Commented:

“Last year, I campaigned hard to ensure that the Britons who took part in the crucial Arctic convoys of 1941-45, which helped support Russia in its fight to maintain a second front against Nazism without which I am convinced Russia would not have survived, were awarded a medal in honour of their bravery. 

“Just under 3,000 British seamen lost their lives during the convoys, with over a hundred British ships having been sunk, and yet the Arctic convoy campaign remains the only one of the Second World War not to have had its own medal.  Winston Churchill famously singled the Arctic Convoys out as the ‘most dangerous run of the war’.

“I first became aware of this injustice when I was approached by Furnace Green resident, Mrs Doreen Simson, whose Brother, Harry, had taken part in the Arctic convoys. 

“I hope that such stories of heroism will serve a reminder of the adversities that our nation has had to overcome in the past and the feats that our country can achieve in the future.”

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