Fury of injured soldiers' families as sex-change Para captain 'wins £250,000' from Army

Jan Hamilton, 43, has officially left the army after the Ministry of Defence settled her damages claim for unfair dismissal and sexual discrimination.

The former Parachute Regiment captain is believed to have agreed a £250,000 out of court settlement over the decision by army chiefs to withdraw a £45,000 job offer as head of media relations in Gibraltar.

She claimed it would have been 'humiliating and demeaning' to attend the routine medical in May last year as a man because she was already living as a woman.

Miss Hamilton - formerly Captain Ian Hamilton - has served in Bosnia and Afghanistan and was wounded by a roadside bomb in Iraq.

The decorated officer has had a career in the army and Territorial Army spanning 25 years and has also worked as a television cameraman in war zones.

In March a Channel 4 documentary entitled "Sex Change Soldier" told the story of her transformation from burly 16 stone soldier to a woman.

The transsexual underwent a full sex-change operation earlier this year and has had breast augmentation and facial reconstruction treatment too.

Miss Hamilton, whose 10-year marriage ended in divorce two years ago, has spoken openly about her gender swap and has been disowned by her family.

Under the terms of the deal with the MOD she cannot reveal details of the settlement, but released a statement on her personal website.

Describing herself as a "TV presenter and model," she announced: "I'm retiring from the army.

Doctors said Lance Bombardier Ben Parkinson was the most injured soldier every to survive but he was only initially given £152,000 in compensation

"I leave the Parachute Regiment with a sense of pride at having served when I was asked.

"My thoughts and prayers are with the men and women who serve overseas in harms way, for I was once one myself."

By contrast Lance Bombardier Ben Parkinson, 23, described by doctors as the most severely wounded British soldier ever to survive, was only originally offered £152,000 compensation.

This was increased to the maximum allowable £285,000 following a Daily Mail campaign.

Yesterday his mother Diane Dernie, who has continued to campaign for a better deal for wounded soldiers, said: "Why does this person deserve so much when our boys have lost everything?

"These seemingly trivial matters are awarded such huge amounts of money and yet people with terrible injuries get nothing. You just despair."

Miss Hamilton claims she had been forced into taking legal action after army chiefs refused to discuss her "transition".

She said before the settlement was reached: "They have ignored me and sidelined me because I was a paratrooper and an officer and it's seen as an ungentlemanly way to behave. My transition hasn't changed my ability to be a good serving soldier."

But the size of the reported payout was yesterday slammed by campaigners struggling to win fair compensation for soldiers who suffer devastating injuries in battle.

Tory MP Patrick Mercer - a former soldier himself - criticised huge discrepancies between payments for injuries and legal job disputes.

He said: "I can't understand how the MOD can justify paying these amounts when soldiers suffering very serious injuries in action are getting less than £10,000."

Even under changes to the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme unveiled by Ministers in January, a young soldier with a severe head injury who is unable to walk, talk or feed himself, would receive just £115,000.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "Jan Hamilton has decided to bring her service to an end. We wish her all the best in all her future endeavours."