Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his timetable is for phase 2 of the veterans' recognition scheme roll-out.

The Veterans’ Recognition Scheme has a two-phase rollout. Phase one is complete; with all Service leavers since December 2018 automatically receiving a recognition card from the Ministry of Defence as part of their discharge process. As at the end of May 2023, there have been over 68,200 HM Armed Forces Veterans’ Recognition Cards issued as part of phase one.

Phase two will extend access to the recognition card scheme to those veterans who left service before December 2018. The Government will be engaging with veterans over the coming months to participate in the testing phase and will begin issuing Veterans’ Recognition Cards by the end of this year.