David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-04-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will establish an office within his Department with a focus on assisting UK military veterans in terms of housing, health, employment, pensions and other needs.
Mark Lancaster
As I stated on 24 March 2016 during a debate in the House (Official Report, columns 1865-74) the concept of such an office, while well-intentioned, would duplicate existing provision. We already have strong cross-Government support for veterans from the Department of Health, the Department for Work and Pensions, and the Department for Communities and Local Government as well as other Departments. In addition, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) operates Veterans UK which focuses on the provision of pensions, compensation and welfare support for veterans.
The Armed Forces Covenant is designed to stop the Armed Forces community facing disadvantage and provides an effective mechanism to connect the various stakeholders who have an interest in supporting our community. The Covenant Reference Group brings together all relevant Departments and Devolved Administrations in a way that a single agency or Ministry could not. In addition, the Defence Secretary ensures that the MOD publishes an annual report to Parliament to communicate the delivery of our Covenant commitments.
