GOVERNMENT plans for compulsory screening of Balkans veterans have been welcomed by Whitefield campaigner Gail Norris.

Mrs Norris's son Corporal Alan Joy died last year after developing leukaemia following a stint in Bosnia.

She criticised the Ministry of Defence for not investigating sooner a possible link between exposure to depleted uranium (DU) and the increased risk of developing cancer and recently took a petition to Downing Street calling for compulsory screening.

Cpl Joy was described as the fittest man in the Army by his colleagues and Mrs Norris began her campaign after a programme of voluntary screening was announced in January. Now following a report by the Royal Society, which called for research but played down the fears of a cancer link, the MoD has put forward proposals to begin systematically monitoring the urine of veterans from the Gulf war and the Balkans.

Their programme also includes biological monitoring in conflicts and epidemiological studies of Balkans soldiers. Mrs Norris, of Heathfield Road, said: "This is what we have been after from the start. We never wanted to lay blame with anyone for Alan's death. We just wanted the Government to introduce compulsory screening for Balkans veterans, which they have agreed to do from the autumn."

She went on: "Two of Alan's friends who served in Bosnia and were concerned about their health went to the doctor and asked for screening. They were told a programme didn't exist so this is fantastic news. People will have to wait until autumn but it is better than nothing. And I will be keeping my ear to the ground to make sure it actually happens."