Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with local authority leaders on the sharing of coroner reports on suicide in relation to former members of the armed forces at (a) the UK and (b) local authority level.

The Ministry of Defence has had no discussion with local authority leaders either at the UK and local authority level in relation to sharing of information from Inquests into the deaths of former members of the Armed Forces where the conclusion that the cause of death was suicide, and there are no plans to do so.

Her Majesty's Coroners are independent judicial officers and do not generally produce reports; the exception being where the Coroner has a concern of a preventable death in similar circumstances. In those specific circumstances where the Coroner might raise a Prevention of Future Deaths Report (PFDR or Regulation 28 report) the Ministry of Defence (MOD) may be asked, where relevant, if it can address any remaining concerns relating to the death. Both the PFDR and the MOD response to it are then usually published on the Chief Coroner for England and Wales website. The publishing of this report is down to the individual Coroner and the Chief Coroner's office.

The only other "report" produced by Coroners is known as a Record of Inquest (a one-page summary of the Inquest) will be offered to the Interested Persons at the conclusion of an Inquest. It is not a document that is publicly available, or shareable to persons not recognised by the Coroner as an Interested Person, unless the Coroner authorises it.