Hove MP Ivor Caplin faced a baptism of fire at the Westminster dispatch box - facing demands to pay compensation for Gulf War Syndrome.

The Labour MP, promoted earlier this month, made his Commons debut as a junior minister at Defence questions.

His first question was a call to pay Gulf War veterans compensation for symptoms attributed to the syndrome, which is not recognised by the Government.

Ministers accept troops who served in the first Gulf War have become ill but not that Gulf War Syndrome is a "single medical entity".

Mr Caplin was quizzed over a High Court ruling last week that a former soldier, Shaun Rusling, is entitled to a pension because he is suffering from a syndrome linked to his service in the 1991 conflict.

Labour MP Ben Chapman, said veterans suffering from symptoms should be compensated without having to go to court.

But Mr Caplin played down the significance of the High Court judgement, saying it would not open the door for thousands of new pension claims.

He said the High Court had made it clear the ruling did not mean official recognition of the generic concept of Gulf War Syndrome. Subsequent cases would have to be considered on their individual merits, Mr Justice Newman said.

Mr Caplin said: "The Government continue to accept that some veterans of the 1990-91 Gulf conflict have become ill, and that many believe that ill-health is related to their Gulf experience.

"The Government's policy is to ensure that Gulf veterans have ready access to medical advice and all relevant information, while continuing to pursue appropriate research into the subject."

Many veterans of the 1991 Gulf War have identified several possible causes for their symptoms, including injections against chemical weapons.