Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he will take steps to ensure that compensation paid under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and War Pension Scheme does not affect veterans' entitlement to means-tested benefits.

There are already significant protections to ensure that compensation paid under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and the War Pension Scheme does not adversely affect entitlement to means-tested benefits. Under Universal Credit, War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme payments are fully disregarded as income, while lump sums paid under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme are treated as capital, and disregarded for 12 months. If such compensation is held in a trust or used to purchase an annuity, both the capital and any income arising from those arrangements may then be disregarded indefinitely.

Housing Benefit regulations permit local authorities to disregard, in whole or part, any War Pensions and guaranteed income payments under the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces Compensation Scheme. In Pension Credit, the first £10 per week of any War Pension Scheme payment or Armed Forces Compensation Scheme award paid due to injury or disablement is disregarded.

The Government remains committed to the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant and to ensuring that those who have served are not disadvantaged due to their service.