Madeleine Moon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance there is for briefing relatives following Boards of Inquiry which take place when there has been an in-service death; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt

Boards of Inquiry were replaced in 2008 by Service Inquiries. The policy on Service Inquiries, which includes support to families, is laid out in Ministry of Defence Joint Service Publication (JSP) 832, Guide to Service Inquiries.

Further, JSP 751, Joint Casualty and Compassionate Policy and Procedures, provides the framework and direction on casualty management, from which the single Services develop and deliver their support for bereaved families. No distinction is made between operational and non-operational deaths.

Although JSPs 832 and 751 lay out the overarching policy and processes, the single Services may involve different organisations in supporting bereaved families according to individual need and local circumstances.

In the case of a Defence Safety Authority Service Inquiry, next of kin are offered a personal brief from the Inquiry President on the findings before they are published.