Asked by: Lola McEvoy (Labour - Darlington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people have (a) applied for and (b) been issued with a digital Veterans ID Card in Darlington.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
As of 2 September 2026, 165 veterans in the Darlington area have applied for and been issued with a digital HM Armed Forces Veterans Card.
Asked by: Lola McEvoy (Labour - Darlington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to make changes to the medical entry standards for joining the Armed Forces.
Answered by Calvin Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans and People)
Defence is committed to a diverse workforce and is seeking to âselect inâ rather than âselect out.â I can confirm an update to the Joint Service Manual of Medical Fitness 950 (JSP 950) Leaflet 6-7-7, which sets the Medical Employment Standards (MES) for joining the Armed Forces was published in August 2024. This followed an intensive period of review undertaken by clinical experts, Defence personnel staff and the recruiting agencies. Each standard was considered in light of existing and/or emerging medical evidence and assessed against the likelihood of the associated medical risk of a five-year engagement. A further update was published in February 2026.
All medical entry standards have been set and are regularly reviewed by military medical specialists, who understand the rigours of military life, the availability of medical support whilst deployed on operations and exercise, and the exceptional impact this may have on existing medical conditions. Ultimately, there is an expectation that all new entrants are able to deploy anywhere in the world to the most hostile of environments, remote from support and medical care, and these challenges are unlike those faced in other occupations.
Defence must find the best balance possible between allowing people with certain health conditions to join the Armed Forces, while maintaining a force that is fully deployable at short notice.
Asked by: Lola McEvoy (Labour - Darlington)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking with the Cabinet colleagues to help support Armed Forces Veterans into publicly sector jobs.
Answered by Al Carns
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence represents veterans at Cabinet. Both he and I are working across Government and with Civil Society to strengthen the support we offer to our veterans and Armed Forces Community. This includes ensuring that the Civil Service benefits from the wide range of skills and talents the veteran community has to offer.
The âGreat Place to Work for Veteransâ (GPTW) scheme is designed to encourage more veterans to join the Civil Service when they leave the armed forces. It is an opt-in recruitment scheme which allows those eligible, who meet the minimum standard required for a role, to progress to the next stage of the application process.
âGoing Forward into Employmentâ (GFiE) is a Life Chances scheme, which provides eligible veterans, spouses, and partners with opportunities within the Civil Service in a variety of roles, most of which are for entry level and up to first line management grades. GFiE recognises that some veterans face unique barriers to employment and aims to address this by making the Civil Service application process as straightforward as possible.
Other public sector initiatives include âStep into Healthâ, which supports NHS employers in the recruitment and retention of talent from the Armed Forces community and seeks to promote the value that veterans can bring to the NHS.
A range of cross-government employment support is also available to veterans and their families after their time in service. This includes the MOD-hosted Career Transition Partnership which is the initial point of resettlement provision for veterans leaving military service, with directly provided support available for two years before and two years after leaving service.
The Government is expanding UK-wide career support for the armed forces community, ensuring support for all veterans, regardless of when they left service. The careers advice service Op ASCEND offer will include a broader range of job support for veterans, helping more into employment and boosting growth under this Governmentâs Plan for Change. This service will work with industry bodies to make sure businesses are set up to make the most of the talents veterans have to offer, showing how the Government is renewing the contract with those who serve and have served.