Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Tobias Ellwood and David Duguid

Monday 26th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[David Duguid (Banff and Buchan) (Con)]

5. What steps his Department is taking to support service personnel in making the transition to civilian life.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Tobias Ellwood)]

Every single year, 15,000 personnel depart from our armed forces, and I hope that I say on behalf of the entire House, “Thank you for your service.” They learn incredible skills while serving, and we need to ensure that the transition back into civilian life is as smooth as possible. I am pleased to say that 90% of those who participate in our transition scheme are either in education or back in employment within six months of departing the armed forces.

[David Duguid (Banff and Buchan) (Con)]

What discussions has my right hon. Friend had with the Office for National Statistics, or the Registrar General for Scotland, about the feasibility of adding the category “armed forces veteran” to the national census, to help us to identify the location of our veterans?

[Mr Ellwood]

I am pleased to say that we have spoken to the National Audit Office, and we are proceeding with the census question to ensure that we have a better understanding of who is actually a veteran in this country. I think it would be very helpful in securing a better estimation. We understand that there are currently 2.5 million veterans, and that the figure will fall to 1.5 million over the next 10 years, but better data through the census will certainly help.