Organophosphate (OP) pesticides are widely used against insects in agriculture. MoD denies the ailment exists.MAY 1994 - A committee of independent medical experts says that the illness does exist but fail to pinpoint a cause.NOVEMBER 1994 - 24 British Gulf war veterans have requests for legal aid granted to prepare claims against the MoD.FEBRUARY 1995 - 480 sufferers of the syndrome inform the MoD that they intend to sue for compensation.APRIL 1995 - Government announces in the Lords that it is not prepared to pay compensation.JUNE 1995 - Ministry of Defence dismisses Gulf war syndrome, saying that alleged sufferers are victims of chronic fatigue.NOVEMBER 1995 - The defence select commitee criticises the MoD for being insensitive to the victims of the syndrome.MARCH 1996 - Tests on veterans shows first physical evidence that the syndrome exists.. "I think there is a definite link," he said.The battle for recognitionFEBRUARY 1991 - The Gulf war ends.JUNE 1993 - Gulf war syndrome hits the headlines asToday newspaper reveals that hundreds of soldiers were suffering from bleeding gums, hair and weight loss and facial paralysis. Others attribute the symptoms to post-traumatic stress disorder brought on by the war itself.Mr Ash believes the latest MoD admission is evidence of similarities with the fate of some farmers who have become chronically depressed and violent after being exposed to pesticides used in sheep-dip.

His revelation yesterday that "organophosphate pesticides were used more widely in the Gulf than we had previously been led to believe" was seen as a softening in the government stance.Some veterans blame their listlessness, nausea and aching limbs on the tablets the troops were given to protect them from chemical attack by the Iraqis. Those who believe in the so-called Gulf war syndrome say it has caused at least 15 deaths. The families of 30 more Gulf veterans who have taken their own lives blame the experience of the Gulf for bringing on depression which led to their suicides.The MoD still refuses to acknowledge that Gulf war syndrome exists.Nicholas Soames, the armed forces minister, said last year that the veterans' claims were "a mixture of unsubstantiated rumour and incorrect information". But it should have come earlier."Mr Ash is one of 740 Gulf veterans suing the Ministry of Defence for compensation for illness they have suffered since returning from the conflict.