Hyde Park bomb family awarded £715k damages

Four Household Cavalry soldiers died in the IRA's Hyde Park bomb attack as they rode to the Changing of Guard ceremony in Whitehall

The family of one of the four soldiers killed in the Hyde Park bombing in July 1982 has been awarded £715,000 in damages.

The ruling followed a civil case brought against John Downey, one of those involved in the IRA attack.

Four members of the Household Cavalry died in the blast in London.

Last year, a High Court judge ruled that John Downey was an "active participant" in the bombing.

On Wednesday, the court ruled that an award of "substantial damages" to "mark society's condemnation" of the bombing can only be made if either parliament or the supreme court allowed it.

However, the court awarded £715,000 in the case of Sarah Jane Young, daughter of one of the soldiers, L/Cpl Jeffrey Young, who was 20 when he was killed.

This is in recognition of her father's loss of earnings in what is known as a dependency claim.

Most of the amount will go to Ms Young's mother for her past care.

A judge ruled John Downey was an "active participant" in the bombing

A criminal case against Mr Downey in relation to the bombing collapsed in 2014 after it emerged he had received a guarantee that he would not face trial.

Mr Downey, who is from Donegal, has denied murdering the soldiers and conspiring to cause an explosion.

Squadron Quartermaster Corporal Roy Bright, 36, Lt Anthony Daly, 23 and Trooper Simon Tipper, 19, were also killed by the car bomb as they rode through central London to attend the Changing the Guard ceremony.

Two of the soldiers died instantly in the blast, while L/Cpl Young and Squadron Quartermaster Corporal Bright died within days.

Sarah Jane Young as a child pictured alongside her father, L/Cpl Jeffrey Young

Earlier this month, a remote High Court hearing considered how much compensation the families of the victims should be awarded.

A lawyer for Ms Young told the court that relatives had been "failed" by the state in their search for justice.

She argued that Ms Young, who was four at the time, had suffered post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression as a result of the bombing.

The court was told she had heard the explosion from a nearby nursery and saw injured soldiers returning to Knightsbridge barracks.