Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government in what format Armed Forces personnel receive advice about their pensions when they leave the services.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The single Services provide holistic support to their respective leavers and signpost to the services available to them. Although individual units may have their own bespoke processes, the Tri Service Resettlement policy (JSP 534) available at the link below explains the minimum level of support.
www.gov.uk/government/publications/tri-service-resettlement-manual-jsp-534
All Service leavers are given the opportunity to attend a Financial Aspects of Resettlement Brief by the Forces Pension Society. Briefs can be attended at any point in a Service person's career, however priority is given to Service leavers with nine months or less to discharge. Briefings are tailored, where numbers permit, to different rank groups, and spouses are welcome to attend.
All Service leavers are issued a Service Leavers' Guide designed to provide help and advise on a range of topics to assist with planning the transition to civilian life, and contains pension information and signposting. This was last reviewed in September 2023 and can be found at the following link:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/651c1168e4e658000d59d888/Service_Leavers_Guide_-_Sep_23.pdf
On discharge, Service leavers also receive a letter from the Joint Personnel Administration Centre (JPAC) detailing their pension entitlement and when this will be paid.
Further information and guidance relating to the Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) is readily available on gov.uk at the following link:
www.gov.uk/guidance/pensions-and-compensation-for-veterans
The Armed Forces Pension Calculator can be accessed at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/armed-forces-pension-calculator
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there is a time limit within which former Armed Forces personnel can transfer their service pension to a new pensions provider.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Armed Forces Pension Scheme (AFPS) benefits can be transferred out up until 12 months before the date the member reaches pension benefit age.
If a member wishes to transfer their AFPS benefits into another Public Sector scheme, this must be done within 12 months of them joining the new Public Sector Scheme.
Both the Pension Schemes Act 2015 and the Taxation of Pensions Act 2014 stipulates the rule that prevents transfers from unfunded public service defined benefit schemes (such as the AFPS) to funded defined contribution schemes in the UK or abroad.
Once an AFPS pension is in payment, this cannot be transferred out.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many cases relating to sexual assault have faced trial in military courts in each year since 2010; and how many of these cases have resulted in (1) guilty and (2) not guilty verdicts.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Ministry of Defence has made it absolutely clear there is no place for unacceptable behaviour in the Armed Forces. We recognise the great courage it takes to come forward and report a sexual offence and Commanding Officers must always refer any allegation of rape and sexual assault, or any other offence which may have a sexual element, to the Service Police. All allegations are thoroughly investigated, and support provided to victims.
Anyone found to fall short of the Services’ high standards or to have committed an offence is dealt with appropriately, which may include imprisonment and dismissal from service.
Starting from 2016, Defence has published an annual Official Statistic on Sexual Offending in the Service Justice System, currently covering the years 2015 to 2019: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/sexual-offences-in-the-service-justice-system
Information for 2020 is due to be published in spring 2021. The following table provides a summary of those statistics, covering all sexual offending in the Service Justice System:
Year | No. of Individuals Court Martialled (Sexual Offences) | No. of Defendants Not Guilty | No. of Defendants Guilty |
2019 | 59 | 42 | 17 |
2018 | 55 | 33 | 21 |
2017 | 80 | 57 | 29 |
2016 | 51 | 31 | 22 |
2015 | 51 | 24 | 21 |
Table notes: Sexual offences as defined within sections 1 to 3, 5 to 15A, 16 to 25, 66 and 67 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (or its historical equivalent) and section 15 of the Sexual Offences Act 1956.
The total number of individuals Court Martialled for sexual offences will not always equal the sum of the guilty and not guilty in each year as some cases were discontinued. Also, some defendants faced more than one charge and each of these charges will have a guilty/not guilty count in the corresponding column, resulting in more verdicts than defendants in some cases.
Comparable information for the years 2010 to 2014 has not been published as an Official Statistic, but information held by the Service Police covering rape and sexual assault cases and convictions in the Military Court Service between 2010 – 2013 has been published in answer to a Parliamentary Question:
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmhansrd/cm140407/text/140407w0003.htm
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many British soldiers (1) have been injured and (2) have died in operations in Mali since the UK's deployment of troops as part of the UN's peacekeeping mission.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Between 1 December 2020 and 12 January 2021 one member of the UK Armed Forces has been injured whilst deployed as part of the Long Range Reconnaissance Group, Mali. This was an accidental injury inside the camp and not involving operational activity.
No UK Service personnel have died during this time.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support, if any, the Royal Air Force provides to British soldiers assigned to operations in Mali.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The UK supports two separate and distinct operations in Mali. We provide support to Operation BARKHANE, the French counter-terrorism operation, and MINUSMA, the UN peacekeeping mission to Mali.
UK forces deployed to MINUSMA have access to a range of UN air assets which enable movement and logistics operations. At present, there are no Royal Air Force assets assigned to MINUSMA. A small number of RAF personnel are embedded within the UK's MINUSMA deployment.
Three Royal Air Force Chinook helicopters are deployed to Mali in support of Operation BARKHANE.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many incidents involving civilian deaths in Mali have included the involvement of British soldiers.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
No incidents of civilian deaths have occurred in Mali that have involved British soldiers.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, whether the governments of other countries will be providing support when HMS Queen Elizabeth is deployed in the South China Sea.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Planning continues for the 2021 Carrier Strike Group deployment and a statement will be made to Parliament in due course. What we can say for now is that this deployment - which will of course include working alongside and engaging with partners and allies (including NATO) - will be a demonstration of the professionalism and capability of our people, our ships and our aircraft. The deployment will also provide support to the UK's wider diplomatic and trade efforts.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when a new UK armed forces families' strategy will be published.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
In 2019 Andrew Selous MP was asked to produce an independent report for the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to explore what more support could be offered to Service families. That review, Living in Our Shoes, was published in June 2020 and considered how the MOD and wider Government policy reflects the varied make-up and diverse needs of a range of family models:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/living-in-our-shoes-understanding-the-needs-of-uk-armed-forces-families
The Government is now considering the findings of Mr Selous' review alongside other key research informing the development of a new UK Armed Forces Families Strategy, which the MOD anticipates will be published in 2021.
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many eviction notices have been served to tenants in Ministry of Defence owned properties (1) in each month since January, and (2) in each year from 2010 to 2020.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Department does not issue eviction notices; these are issued and enforced by a court. The Department issues Notices to Vacate (NTV) in the following circumstances:
Service personnel to coincide with the final day of Service, or when their entitlement ceases due to personal circumstances.
Civilian sub-let tenants prior to the termination of their occupancy.
The annual number of NTV and enforcement actions required to regain possession from Service personnel/former Service personnel in Financial Year 2015 - 2019 was as follows:
(No centralised records were kept on the number of NTV and enforcement actions required to regain possession from Service personnel in Service Families Accommodation prior to 1 April 2015).
Period of time | Number of NTV issued | Number of enforcement actions |
1 April 2015 - 31 March 2016 | 2,330 | 114 |
1 April 2016 - 31 March 2017 | 2,108 | 43 |
1 April 2017 - 31 March 2018 | 2,264 | 58 |
1 April 2018 - 31 March 2019 | 2,558 | 51 |
1 April 2019 - 31 December 2019 | 1,611 | 37 |
The monthly number of NTV and enforcement actions required to regain possession from Service personnel/former Service personnel since January 2020 was as follows:
Period of time | Number of NTV issued | Number of enforcement actions |
January 2020 | 166 | 1 |
February 2020 | 105 | 1 |
March 2020 | 110 | 1 |
April – September 2020 | 0 | 1 |
The annual number of NTV and and enforcement actions required to regain possession from civilian sub-let tenants from Financial Year 2016 - 2019:
(The civilian sub-let programme started in 2016, and as such is reflected in the table below)
Period of time | Number of NTV issued | Number of enforcement actions |
1 January 2016 - 31 December 2016 | 0 | 0 |
1 January 2017 - 31 December 2017 | 1 | 0 |
1 January 2018 - 31 December 2018 | 0 | 0 |
1 January 2019 - 31 December 2019 | 8 | 3 |
The monthly number of NTV issued to civilian sub-let tenants since January 2019:
January 2020 | February 2020 | March - August 2020 | September 2020 |
|
|
0 | 4 | 0 | 367 |
|
|
Asked by: Lord Touhig (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Armed Forces personnel are on standby to carry out door-to-door COVID 19 testing.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
There are currently 739 Armed Forces personal at high readiness, or otherwise committed to supporting the national COVID response. Approximately 7,000 personnel will shortly be brought to readiness ahead of the Winter period.