Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to provide compensation to LGBT+ veterans who have lost (a) earnings and (b) pensions as a result of the former Armed Forces ban on homosexuality.
My predecessor as Minister for Defence People and Veterans publicly apologised for the historic treatment of the LGBT veteran community and I reiterate that this treatment was entirely unacceptable. LGBT personnel have made, and continue to make, significant contributions to the Armed Forces.
I am proud of this Government’s record on improving equality. We made it possible for men with eligible historical convictions for decriminalised behaviours to apply to have their convictions disregarded and we are in the process of exploring how further Service Offences can be brought within the scope of the scheme to enable more veterans to benefit from it.
We have stated that we will go beyond existing actions in righting historic wrongs to the LGBT veteran community and I remain committed to doing so. Work is underway which will seek not only to understand and acknowledge the impacts of pre-millennium practices in the Armed Forces relating to gender identity and sexual orientation, but also where appropriate to address these impacts. We do not currently have plans to identify individuals.