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The family of Burley atomic test veteran William O'Neill have told of their frustration as the battle for compensation continues.

They have spoken out after it was revealed the MoD is facing up to a £7.5m lawyers' bill after more than 1,000 test veterans fought off claims that they had brought their compensation bids too late.

But the MoD has been granted permission to mount an Appeal Court bid to block their claims which, if successful, could be worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

Top judge Mr Justice Foskett has called for an end to the legal war between the veterans and the ministry. However, if disagreement continues and the MoD pursues its appeal, the legal wrangling is likely to take years and many ailing veterans will not survive to hear its outcome.

Earlier this month, Mr Justice Foskett handed them a crucial preliminary victory when he rejected MoD arguments that the veterans' claims are "bound to fail" and had been brought to court too late.

The same judge has now ordered the MoD to make an "interim payment" of legal costs totalling £7.5m and, with lawyers' bills continuing to mount, that is likely to concentrate the Government's mind on the possibility of settling the veterans' claims.

Granting the MoD permission to appeal against his decision, the judge said: "It will doubtless be a considerable disappointment to many veterans that the application (for permission to appeal) has been made at all.

"They will, rightly or wrongly, see it as what they will suggest is a further attempt to delay or prevent them from having their cases tested independently."

The O'Neill family is calling for an end to the fight.

William O'Neill, 70, of Willow Close, Burley, was one of 1,011 veterans who claimed they were treated as guinea pigs during Cold War atomic bomb testing. He died last July from a rare form of cancer.

They were seeking unlimited damages from the Ministry of Defence following the tests in the Indian and Pacific Oceans in the 1950s.

Mr O'Neill's sister Carol Donato, 55, said: "This is just going to drag on and on. The families, like the widows, are tired and vulnerable and will struggle to fight on. You can't believe they can treat their own countrymen like this. They could at least make it easier for the relatives."