A British police officer poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok in 2018 is still “fighting for part of his pension,” seven weeks after he was medically retired, his wife said.
Nick Bailey was one of the officers poisoned while responding to the scene where former Russian agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia had been poisoned in Salisbury, England, on March 4, 2018.
Bailey said he was very sorry to leave the job, which had been all he wanted to do since his teen years, but he had to admit defeat and accept that he could no longer do the job in the aftermath of the incident.
The tweet highlighted an article about how Wiltshire Police Federation had supported officers impacted by the Novichok poisoning incident.
“This was such a high-profile incident that it attracted a media circus with journalists camped outside his door, which was distressing for Nick and his family. The Federation was there to ensure his point of view was put across, to keep the media away from the door,” Andrews said.
“We also helped Nick to get the compensation package he deserved and supported him with insurance and his legal claim for injury at work.”
Andrews said that the Salisbury incident has been “the biggest ongoing welfare job that Wiltshire Police Federation has ever faced, because of the number of officers who have been impacted by the loss of their rest days through the stress and strain of dealing with the incident or the aftermath.”
Commenting on the Twitter post, Sarah Bailey said that her husband was not in receipt of all of his pension.
Wiltshire police said that they wished the best for Nick Bailey’s future, but felt it was inappropriate to comment publicly on the matter.
“Since Nick Bailey found himself at the centre of the novichok international incident, Wiltshire police have worked with him and his family to provide continuing support to help them deal with the impact of this terrible incident and assist him to try and return to active police duties," a spokesperson for Wiltshire police told the The Epoch Times in an email.
“It was with great sadness that regrettably this was not possible, and Nick left the force in October 2020 with our very best wishes for the future,” the spokesperson added.
“It would be wholly inappropriate for us to further comment publicly on private matters relating to a former police officer.”
Andrews said that Wiltshire Police Federation will continue to support Bailey when he needs it.
“What happened to Nick is unprecedented and I hope will never happen to any other police officer or any other British citizen again. I can only hope that one day the offenders will be brought to justice and Nick will be able to rest knowing that,” Andrew said in a statement emailed to The Epoch Times.
“Wiltshire Police Federation has supported Nick and his family since this terrible incident and our door is always open to help him in the future.”
This article was updated on Dec. 6 with the response from Mark Andrews from the Wilshire Police Federation.
