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Armed Forces Personnel

This debate on armed forces personnel comes just after we have marked the 25th anniversary of the end of the Falklands war. I join colleagues in all parts of the House in paying tribute to the courage of our forces who liberated the Falklands and those who continue to serve our country in Iraq and Afghanistan. The commemoration of the Falklands conflict puts into focus the way in which we in Britain look at former service personnel—our veterans. Like many others, I was disturbed to read press reports that more veterans of the Falklands war have taken their own lives since 1982 than were killed in the conflict. The South Atlantic Medal Association says that it is almost certain that the suicide toll is greater than the 255 men who were killed in the Falklands. If the figures are correct, it is an indictment on all of us, and it is a wake-up call that we must do more. There are many and various misconceptions about veterans and the problems that they face. It is important to emphasise that the overwhelming majority of men and women who leave the armed forces settle successfully into civilian life. But not all of them adjust to life outside the service, and in extreme cases that can lead to self-harm and to suicide. Recent statistics show that in a 23-year period—1984 to 2006—there have been 687 suicides among serving men and women in our armed forces: 672 men and 15 women. There appear to be no figures for veterans as a whole, but just one case is one case too many. We should be totally committed to reducing the incidence of suicide and self-harm in the armed forces and among our veterans. I do not think that I am alone in being dismayed that significant numbers of those who are sleeping rough on the streets of our country are ex-services. Many of them suffer long-term combat-related psychological problems. I welcome the announcement by my hon. Friend the Minister for Veterans at St. Thomas’ hospital in London that the programme of medical assessments set up for Gulf war veterans will be expanded to allow larger numbers of veterans to receive the service. The medical assessment programme will now offer a mental health consultancy for all veterans who have seen military service since 1982, which includes those who fought in the Falklands campaign 25 years ago. The assessment will cover veterans who are worried that they may have a service-related mental health problem that is not fully understood within the national health service. My hon. Friend’s decision is an excellent one and I sincerely hope it will be extended to all veterans, no matter when they served. When I was a Defence Minister, I was invited to speak at the British Medical Association conference, but I received a phone call from the Prime Minister giving me the DCM, so I never got to the conference. In any event, in the conference preparations, I suggested that GPs should as a matter of course, whenever someone comes to see them with a psychological problem, ask whether they are ex-services and point them in the direction of organisations such as Combat Stress. I pay tribute to the hard work that Combat Stress does. I share the view of the hon. Member for Woodspring (Dr. Fox). It is a specialist provider of clinical care and welfare support. It is an excellent organisation that should be supported. I spent a day as a fly on the wall, so to speak, with a Combat Stress caseworker, and I know that the support given is highly regarded by mental health professionals and is critical to improving the lives of ex-servicemen and women. That experience confirmed my view that we have to do more. There is a view in the Ministry of Defence that veterans who have health problems following their discharge from the services get priority treatment in the national health service. I do not believe that that is the case. The NHS is a wonderful organisation that delivers world-class health care every hour of every day, but I have not seen evidence that ex-servicemen and women take priority. If we are to recruit and retain the very best men and women to our armed forces, we must provide those exceptional people with exceptional support, which means looking after our people throughout life. As I have said before, the treatment of veterans has a real and direct bearing on our ability to recruit, train and retain the people we need to sustain our current and future operational capabilities. The National Audit Office published a report in November 2006 entitled ““Ministry of Defence—Recruitment and Retention in the Armed Forces””. It stated:"““Evidence from our survey of pinch point trades, as well as from Department’s own surveys and the Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body’s findings, suggests that there are several common factors which persuade Service personnel to leave. These are mainly related to the impact of service life on family life, including the ability to plan ahead and work-life balance.””" That is why I argued for a value agenda when I was in the MOD. We value our servicemen and women and their families; we value our reserves, cadets, their families and their employers; and we value our veterans, their widows and their families and do everything in our power to demonstrate that we do value them. Members of the armed forces draw heavily on the support that they get from their families and loved ones. The operational welfare package is so important because, among other things, it provides an additional 20 days’ leave after a six-month tour. Families receive concessionary travel and support through advice centres and internet access. It is an excellent way of demonstrating the value agenda, but such support initiatives for our servicemen and women must be continued when they leave the armed forces. The Veterans Agency does tremendous work in providing a one-stop shop for advice and information, catering for veterans both young and old, and helping on issues as varied as advice on compensation and war pensions, housing, employment and commemorative events. The agency has a free phone number—0800 169 22 77—and a website. There is a growing need to expand its excellent services. The Government have a good record of supporting the 5.5 million veterans we have in this country. We created the first ever Minister for Veterans. I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Minister for Veterans for his work. I want his role to be enhanced. It is time to take the next step and create a Department for Veterans, which would strengthen the role played by my hon. Friend and ensure even greater focus on the services provided to our veterans. It would develop, strengthen and co-ordinate links between Government Departments such as Health and Work and Pensions, and the voluntary organisations such as Combat Stress, the Royal British Legion, St Dunstan’s and others. A Department for Veterans would provide a focal point in the public eye for veterans’ issues. It would also send a positive message to the men and women who serve in the British armed forces that we will honour their commitment and their sacrifices—sacrifices that they are making in defending our country. Such a Department would make it clear that they and their families will have all the support that this country can provide for them for as long as they want it. A Department for Veterans would be able to take positive action on issues such as employment, homelessness, education, training, employment, financial benefit and research into matters such as post-traumatic stress and mental health. On the train coming up from Wales last week—the train was delayed, so I had a long, long journey—I got into a conversation with a young man who had served in the Army for six years. He told me that he had been injured. Unfortunately, the level of support that he received was wholly unacceptable. From the information that he gave me, the Army had failed him. As we talked about his experience, my interests and so on, he asked me why there is no skills database that employers who are recruiting can use to access people who have left the armed forces and take advantage of the skills that they have. Our armed forces have highly transferable skills. Employers speak highly of former servicemen or women and of the excellent training provided by the armed forces. Servicemen and women need to know that when they choose to leave the forces and take up a second career, we, as a country, will provide them with the necessary guidance, career advice and access to vacancies.