Oral Answers to Questions

Tom Gordon Excerpts

Monday 8th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

8. What steps he is taking to improve recruitment and retention in the armed forces.

[Mr Speaker]

Minister, welcome.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Louise Sandher-Jones)]

It is a huge honour to be here, and I am very honoured.

We inherited a crisis in recruitment and retention. This Government are renewing the contract with those who serve by giving them the largest pay rise in 20 years, allocating an extra £1.5 billion to fix forces housing and establishing a new Armed Forces Commissioner. It is clear that our actions are having an effect. On recruitment, inflow continues to improve and is up 13% year on year, and applications to join the armed forces and intakes to basic training both remain high. On retention, morale had been falling year on year with more people leaving than joining, but we have started to reverse that decline, with an 11% reduction in outflow year on year.

[Tom Gordon]

I welcome the Minister to her place. Over the past year I have had the privilege of taking part in the armed forces parliamentary scheme, and have met people across the United Kingdom and beyond. One of the issues that arises when it comes to retention is that of the families of overseas workers in the armed forces. They have no access to work opportunities, and there are no specific visas or agreements with other countries where our armed forces are based, which means that they must often take pay cuts or not relocate with their partners in the forces. Will the Minister think about what we can do to support armed forces workers overseas?

[Louise Sandher-Jones]

I have served overseas and observed this issue at first hand. Discussions with the Cabinet Office are ongoing, and I hope to update the hon. Member in due course.

UK Military Base Protection

Tom Gordon Excerpts

Monday 23rd June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Luke Pollard]

The Foreign Secretary was very clear, when he was at the Dispatch Box for his statement earlier, that the UK and the US share the same long-term ambition to ensure that Iran does not have a nuclear weapon.

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

Let me associate myself with the remarks about Armed Forces Week from Members across the House and the condemnation of the escalation of the situation in the middle east. Is the Minister able to explain to me if there will be any additional security measures at the Army Foundation College in Harrogate, given the unique nature of what is happening there?

[Luke Pollard]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising the college at Harrogate. It is a really important part of the defence family and I know that the Minister for Veterans and People, my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham Selly Oak (Al Carns), who is sat next to me on the Front Bench, takes an especially keen interest in the affairs of Harrogate. As the review is conducted and we see what lessons can be learnt from the incident at Brize Norton, we will be taking measures possibly at all military installations, including training establishments across the country if that is suitable. But I am certain that the Minister for Veterans would welcome a further conversation with the hon. Gentleman in relation to Harrogate in particular.

Oral Answers to Questions

Tom Gordon Excerpts

Monday 24th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Calum Miller (Bicester and Woodstock) (LD)]

3. What steps he is taking to ensure that veterans receive adequate support after leaving the armed forces.

[Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)]

19. What steps he is taking to ensure that veterans receive adequate support after leaving the armed forces.

[The Minister for Veterans and People (Al Carns)]

I have always said that we train people to join the military and to be in the military, but we do not necessarily train them to be a civilian after they leave. That is why this Government have taken swift action to support veterans upon leaving. Last month I launched Operation Ascend, which will help veterans thrive into post-service careers. Our hugely successful career transition partnership has now seen 88% of all veterans leaving straight into employment since October. We have extended national insurance contributions relief from April 2026 for employers who recruit veterans. On top of that, this Government have awarded £3.7 million in veterans housing grants. I am a firm believer that over the past 14 years we did not take enough responsibility for supporting our veterans, and plans that we will unveil in the future will take a step in the right direction to improving that.

--- Later in debate ---

[Al Carns]

I thank all the people, most of whom are probably volunteers, who are supporting veterans in the hon. Member’s constituency. Two days ago I visited another tri-service veterans hub that is delivering, I think, exactly the same types of services. We often find that while there is a great deal support out there, it is difficult for veterans to navigate the process of finding the right place, and we are working on plans to help them with that.

[Tom Gordon]

Harrogate is a proud armed forces town and the location of the Army Foundation College, and Menwith Hill and Catterick are nearby. North Yorkshire as a whole plays an important part for our armed forces. Veterans in my constituency have told me that they often move back there after postings throughout their careers, but they then have problems accessing housing through the local authority. What conversations is the Minister having with local government colleagues to ensure that local authorities have a better understanding of how to listen to what veterans say about the adaptations they need?

[Al Carns]

As the hon. Member knows very well, access to social and affordable housing is a severe problem across the country. We work with many councils, explaining to them the covenant as a whole and the need for veterans to be fast-tracked. Op Fortitude is a prime example: there have been 3,000 referrals, and 825 veterans have been put into housing in a relatively short time. I would like to connect the hon. Member with that operation to ensure that we can point any veterans who need such support in the right direction.