A TERRITORIAL Army unit in Runcorn is being probed as part of an investigation into missing cash bonuses for part-time soldiers.

Army accountants are carrying out the probe into how volunteers with 33 Signal Regiment, based at Liverpool Road, Huyton, missed out on hundreds of pounds in annual payments.

Auditors going through the books at Huyton TA have already found 15 Liverpool soldiers underpaid by up to £1,550 of their training bounty.

Further investigations are under way at 33 Regiment's other squadrons in Runcorn, Aintree and Manchester, which investigators believe may reveal more unpaid soldiers.

The cash was due as part of the soldiers' annual training bounty, designed to compensate for loss of earnings while on Army training courses.

TA recruits are paid the same basic daily rate as Regular soldiers of their rank, ranging from £28 for a basic soldier to £96 for a major.

In addition to the basic pay, soldiers receive an annual tax-free lump sum paid out on completion of minimum training requirement.

Now calls are being made for senior officers to intervene after the bungling of records left some soldiers facing hardship.

One TA soldier, who asked not to be named, said: 'We give up our spare time and weekends for the Army and rely on this money to cover our salaries.'