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Written Question
Veterans: Homelessness
Tuesday 21st November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the Government has spent on Op Fortitude in 2023.

Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)

This Government is working towards ending veteran rough sleeping via Op FORTITUDE, a dedicated referral scheme to provide a single central point for local authorities and charities, with £8.55m in funding for specialist help for former armed forces personnel in more than 900 veteran supported housing units.


Written Question
Defence Transition Services
Tuesday 21st November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that the Defence Transition Service has sufficient resources to support service leavers.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

We are very proud of the support provided by both Defence Transition Services, and by the Veterans Welfare Service to date. To ensure that we continue to provide the best possible support for our Service leavers and veterans, the Ministry of Defence and the Office for Veterans’ Affairs co-sponsored an Independent Review of the welfare services for veterans provided by HM Government. The subsequent report made a number of recommendations, which the Government will be responding to in full in the near future.


Written Question
Veterans: Identity Cards
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of when phase two of the Veteran's Recognition Scheme will be completed.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

As of October 2023, there have been over 75,000 cards issued as part of phase 1.

Phase 2 refers to the launch of the service for pre-2018 veterans to verify their status and receive a card. The Government remains committed to delivering the card to every veteran who wants one, and since this summer, has been engaging with thousands of veterans to test the service. We will now begin issuing hundreds of cards per day over the next month and produce thousands of cards for pre-2018 veterans before the end of 2023. Depending on the volume of applications received, we expect production to increase over the course of 2024 towards a maximum output capacity of around 50,000 cards per month.

Once launched, the service will remain live for all veterans who want a card to apply at any time in the future, and cards will continue to be issued automatically to Service leavers. Details of when all veterans will be able to apply for a card will be issued in due course.


Written Question
Armed Forces Compensation Scheme: Charities
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many charities were consulted as part of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Quinquennial Review 2022-23.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 16 November 2023 to Question 1753.


Written Question
Op COURAGE: Finance
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding was provided for Op Courage in 2023.

Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Planned spend on Op COURAGE in financial year 2023/24 is £23.5 million. Following the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, an additional £2.7 million was pledged over three years (until March 2025) to expand Op COURAGE services to support those experiencing complex mental and/or physical trauma, or alcohol and substance misuse.


Written Question
Ministry of Defence: ICT
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of the total expenditure on his Department's digital transformation programme.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

As stated in Footnote 14 of the National Audit Office’s report entitled ‘The Digital Strategy for Defence: A review of early implementation’, Defence will spend £1.360 billion on digital transformation in the period financial years 2022-23 to 2031-32.


Written Question
Health Services: Veterans
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding was provided for Op Nova in 2023.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Planned spend on Op RESTORE for 2023/24 is £0.5 million. Additional costs associated with treatment costs form part of overall expenditure within integrated care boards and are not separately identified.

Op NOVA launched on 1 April 2023. Planned spend on Op NOVA for 2023/24 is £2.03 million.


Written Question
Veterans: Health Services
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding was provided for Op Restore in 2023.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Planned spend on Op RESTORE for 2023/24 is £0.5 million. Additional costs associated with treatment costs form part of overall expenditure within integrated care boards and are not separately identified.

Op NOVA launched on 1 April 2023. Planned spend on Op NOVA for 2023/24 is £2.03 million.


Written Question
Veterans: Radiation Exposure
Monday 20th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he plans to invite all Nuclear Test Veteran charities to a reception in November 2023.

Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)

The Government is committed to recognising the contributions of Nuclear Test Veterans.

That is why the Prime Minister announced the creation of the Nuclear Test Medal in November 2022, and the government delivered on its promise that those veterans who had applied would receive their medals in time for Remembrance Sunday.

I am delighted to confirm that I will be hosting a reception on 28 November for a small cohort of the first veteran recipients of the medal. Due to limited capacity, we have prioritised inviting veterans in order to honour and recognise the contribution of those who served at the time.


Written Question
Armed Forces Compensation Scheme
Thursday 16th November 2023

Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans were consulted as part of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Quinquennial Review 2022-23.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) compensates for any injury, illness or death which was caused by service on or after 6 April 2005. Both currently Serving personnel and veterans are eligible to apply.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to ensuring that the AFCS delivers for those who make a claim and there are mechanisms of assessment and accountability in place to ensure that this is the case. The AFCS Quinquennial Review (QQR) takes place every five years to ensure the AFCS remains fit for purpose and to identify opportunities for improvement. The full report can be found at the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/quinquennial-review-of-the-armed-forces-compensation-scheme-2023-headline-findings-and-progress-report

Annex B of the AFCS QQR report sets out a list of stakeholder organisations, groups and individuals consulted. There were a total of 105 respondents, including eight AFCS recipients as well as representatives from charities such as Blesma, COBSEO and the Royal British Legion amongst others.