Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress he has made on implementing recommendation 36 of the LGBT Veterans Independent Review, published in May 2023.

Recommendation 36 relates to the expansion of the Veterans’ Covenant Healthcare Alliance (VCHA) accreditation scheme to include care homes and hospices. In July 2024, a pilot was launched by the Royal Star and Garter, supported by the VCHA. An evaluation of the pilot, led by the Royal British Legion, commenced in summer 2025. The evaluation findings will assess the practical viability of the scheme and will be accompanied by a full analysis of the options and associated financial costs.

Recommendation 38 relates to treatment for addiction. Veterans can access all substance misuse services available to non-veterans. In addition, the National Health Service has commissioned Op COURAGE, the veterans’ mental health and wellbeing service which provides support to veterans with substance misuse and mental health issues. NHS England are developing plans to provide training and education about the needs of the Armed Forces community to NHS staff through the National Armed Forces training and education programme. This will include NHS services that provide support to veterans with addiction issues.