A new award, the Elizabeth Cross, will be presented to the families of the thousands of British services personnel killed on operations or as a result of terrorism in a mark of national recognition for their loss, it has been announced.

But the announcement, coming days after Gordon Brown announced that a public inquiry into the Iraq War will be held, has been dismissed as unimportant by some.

Eddie Hancock, whose son Jamie was killed in Iraq in November 2006, said: "It is nice for some families because the medal recognises their children, their sacrifice and what our armed forces do.

"But if it came to a choice between a medal and better equipment for our armed forces then I would opt for the equipment every time. I regularly speak to soldiers who are coming back from Afghanistan and they are desperate for equipment.

"Handing medals out is not a substitute and it won't bring my son back."

A number of Wigan families are eligible for the new award, the first to bear the name of a reigning Monarch since the George Cross was instituted by King George VI for brave acts by both civilians and the military in 1940.

They include Kingsman Hancock's family as well as that of Royal Marine Corporal Liam Elms, who was killed last New Year's Eve in Afghanistan.

And the family of former Wigan Athletics trainee Paratrooper Lee Ellis, from Wythenshawe, who was killed in Iraq in 2003, will also receive the award, as will those of Able Seaman Steven Heyes and Staff Sgt Jim Prescott, who were both killed during the Falklands War.

Recognition will also go to the loved ones of those killed in conflicts dating back to 1948 including the Korean War and those killed on operations in Northern Ireland.

The medal will be given to the next of kin along with a scroll signed by The Queen.