Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to his Department was of the Continuity of Education Allowance in the latest period for which data is available; and what recent estimate his Department has made of the impact of making independent school fees subject to VAT on the cost to his Department of the Continuity of Education Allowance in the next financial year.

For Academic Year 2023-24, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) paid £88.6 million for Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) to support the education of 4,005 children for 2,666 Service personnel. Following the Budget statement by the Chancellor on 30 October, the MOD confirmed that it would carry out an in-year re-rating of CEA. The increased cost of the allowance to MOD is unknown until the exercise completes in early December.