Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to tackle homelessness among veteran communities in rural areas.

This is a Government of service that will always stand up for those who serve our country. I am working across Government to ensure veterans throughout the UK have access to the support they need on housing, as well as health, employment and other areas.

This Government has, just last week, committed £3.5 million for veteran supported homelessness programmes, including Op FORTITUDE, the homelessness pathway for veterans. As of 3 November 2024, Op FORTITUDE has taken over 2,700 referrals and supported nearly 800 veterans into housing.

This new funding announcement follows the Prime Minister’s commitment earlier in the year that veterans living in England will be exempt from local connection and residency tests when applying for social housing. I recently attended a roundtable with veteran housing organisations to discuss the implementation of this reform, and I am also a member of the Inter-ministerial Group on Homelessness and Rough Sleeping which is driving progress on the development of our cross-government homelessness strategy.