The full eligibility criteria for the Nuclear Test Medal are available in the attached.

There is no official definition of the term British nuclear test veteran. Existing processes, including the eligibility criteria for the Nuclear Test Medal, are considered sufficient for determining qualifying service for the relevant purpose. We have, however, taken a significant step in broadening recognition through the medal scheme by extending eligibility to all UK personnel who directly supported American atmospheric nuclear tests during the 1950s and 1960s, as well as those deployed from the UK to support the monitoring of French and Chinese atmospheric tests.

To date, nearly 6,000 veterans, or their next of kin where the veteran is deceased, have received the Nuclear Test Medal in recognition of their service. For further information on the criteria, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nuclear-test-medal-eligibility-criteria

There is no official definition of the term British nuclear test veteran. Existing processes, including the eligibility criteria for the Nuclear Test Medal, are considered sufficient for determining qualifying service for the relevant purpose. We have, however, taken a significant step in broadening recognition through the medal scheme by extending eligibility to all UK personnel who directly supported American atmospheric nuclear tests during the 1950s and 1960s, as well as those deployed from the UK to support the monitoring of French and Chinese atmospheric tests.

To date, nearly 6,000 veterans, or their next of kin where the veteran is deceased, have received the Nuclear Test Medal in recognition of their service. For further information on the criteria, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nuclear-test-medal-eligibility-criteria

The Nuclear Test Medal is awarded to recognise service connected with the United Kingdom's nuclear testing programme between 1952 and 1967 and those personnel who took part in subsequent operations to monitor atmospheric nuclear tests conducted by other nations. The criteria have been expanded to now include all UK personnel who directly supported American atmospheric nuclear tests during the 1950s and 1960s, and UK personnel who were deployed from the UK in support of monitoring of French and Chinese atmospheric tests. Nearly 6,000 veterans (or awarded posthumously to the next of kin of eligible individuals) have received their Nuclear Test Medal in recognition of their service.

To qualify, individuals must have served at designated operational locations during the relevant periods, including participation in the UK nuclear test programme, support to US atmospheric nuclear tests under Operations BAGPIPES and DOMINIC, or deployment from the UK to monitor French and Chinese atmospheric nuclear tests. Eligibility is assessed against the published criteria, which specify the qualifying operations, locations, roles and periods of service required for the award.

All LGBT veterans who were dismissed or discharged due to the Ban can apply to the Financial Recognition Scheme (FRS) for the Dismissed or Discharged Payment. LGBT veterans who were impacted in other ways under the Ban, including veterans who felt pressured to resign, can apply for an Impact Payment, which is determined by an Independent Panel. The Panel considers the applicant’s testimony, any supporting information, and any Service records.

For all applications made to the FRS, the burden of determining whether a fact or matter occurred lies with the Ministry of Defence (MOD) rather than the applicant. Unless the MOD finds evidence to contradict their testimony, the facts or experiences reported by an applicant will be accepted as taking place, if, on a balance of probabilities, they are more likely to have occurred than not. This approach recognises the historical issues relating to the retention and destruction of documentation and prevents applicants being disadvantaged due to records being incomplete through no fault of their own.

The Government is deeply grateful to all those who participated in the UK's nuclear testing programme and recognises their service and the significant contribution they made to the nation's security.

The Ministry of Defence does not hold information on how many British military personnel who participated in the UK's nuclear weapons testing programme are currently alive. It is estimated that around 22,000 Service personnel and civilians participated in the UK's nuclear testing programme between 1952 and 1967.

There is no dedicated compensation scheme for Nuclear Test Veterans and their families. However, veterans who believe they have suffered ill health as a result of their service may apply for no-fault compensation under the War Pension Scheme, provided they served before 6 April 2005.

War Pensions may be awarded for illness or injury caused by service in the Armed Forces, with the benefit of reasonable doubt given to the claimant. Claims are assessed on the basis of available service and medical evidence, medically certified, and carry a full right of appeal to an independent tribunal.

Arrangements and support for nuclear test veterans in other countries, including the United States and France, are matters for those governments.

In the United Kingdom, veterans who believe they have suffered ill health as a result of their service may apply for no-fault compensation under the War Pension Scheme, provided they served before 6 April 2005. Claims are considered on the basis of the available service and medical evidence, with the benefit of reasonable doubt given to the claimant, and decisions carry a full right of appeal to an independent tribunal.

The Government is deeply grateful to all those who participated in the UK nuclear testing programme. We owe an enduring debt of gratitude to the more than 22,000 Service personnel, scientists and civilians whose contributions helped safeguard the nation's security.

The Government has carefully considered concerns raised regarding the handling of records relating to the UK nuclear testing programme. To address long-standing questions from nuclear test veterans about blood and urine testing policies, an extensive records discovery exercise was commissioned and completed, examining tens of thousands of documents held by the Ministry of Defence.

The exercise found no evidence of intentional concealment of medical records. The findings were published along with an accompanying Written Ministerial Statement on 15 July 2026.

The Government is deeply grateful to all those who participated in the UK nuclear testing programme. We owe an enduring debt of gratitude to the more than 22,000 Service personnel, scientists and civilians whose contributions helped safeguard the nation's security.

The Government has carefully considered concerns raised regarding the handling of records relating to the UK nuclear testing programme. To address long-standing questions from nuclear test veterans about blood and urine testing policies, an extensive records discovery exercise was commissioned and completed, examining tens of thousands of documents held by the Ministry of Defence.

The exercise found no evidence of intentional concealment of medical records. The findings were published along with an accompanying Written Ministerial Statement on 15 July 2026.

The government publishes rough sleeping management information, including data on the nationality of people sleeping rough, how many people sleeping rough have left the armed forces within the last 85 days and the number of people sleeping rough over the course of the month who have moved into accommodation, as well as the number of people sleeping rough over the course of the month who had previously moved into settled accommodation. You can access the latest data on gov.uk here.

As well as this, the government’s analytical annex to our National Plan to End Homelessness includes research about the causes of rough sleeping, which you can find on gov.uk here.

We are continuing to work with the Home Office on progressing policy and scope to deliver this commitment in a way that is fair, comprehensive and achievable.

Equinity is a sub-contractor of Sopra Steria and pays approximately 477,000 Armed Forces Pensions annually on behalf of the Ministry of Defence. 335 individuals were overpaid a total of £5.1 million, owing to National Insurance (NI) abatement calculation errors by the paying agent Equinity. This represents a small proportion of payments and are not reflective of the overall payment service provided.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) exercises oversight through established governance, contract management, assurance and audit arrangements. These include contractual performance monitoring, regular service reporting, quality assurance activity undertaken by the service providers, independent assurance reviews commissioned by the Authority, and external scrutiny through established audit processes. The Armed Forces Pension Scheme is also subject to review by the Government Internal Audit Agency and examination by the National Audit Office as part of wider governance, risk and assurance arrangements. Following identification of the National Insurance abatement issue, additional oversight arrangements were introduced to monitor corrective activity, review root causes, validate proposed corrections, track progress against remediation plans and strengthen preventative and detective controls designed to reduce the risk of similar issues arising in future.

The MOD first identified that there was a potential issue relating to the application of National Insurance abatements in November 2024. Further extensive work was subsequently undertaken to establish the full extent of the issue, determine the affected population and validate individual cases before corrective action could commence. Corrective activity commenced following identification of the affected population, completion of calculation and assurance activity, and approval of the proposed corrective approach. Revision of affected awards and notification of individuals commenced in January 2026.

We recognise that this situation may cause uncertainty for those affected and continue to provide comprehensive one-to-one welfare support from Veterans Services Welfare managers. Anyone who believes repayment may not be possible, or could cause financial hardship should contact the Ministry of Defence using the details provide in their letters.

Individuals can make a defence against recovery based on an assessment of their personal circumstances. Guidance on valid reasons for disputing repayment can be found in Managing Public Money - Annex 4.11. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/managing-public-money

Equinity is a sub-contractor of Sopra Steria and pays approximately 477,000 Armed Forces Pensions annually on behalf of the Ministry of Defence. 335 individuals were overpaid a total of £5.1 million, owing to National Insurance (NI) abatement calculation errors by the paying agent Equinity. This represents a small proportion of payments and are not reflective of the overall payment service provided.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) exercises oversight through established governance, contract management, assurance and audit arrangements. These include contractual performance monitoring, regular service reporting, quality assurance activity undertaken by the service providers, independent assurance reviews commissioned by the Authority, and external scrutiny through established audit processes. The Armed Forces Pension Scheme is also subject to review by the Government Internal Audit Agency and examination by the National Audit Office as part of wider governance, risk and assurance arrangements. Following identification of the National Insurance abatement issue, additional oversight arrangements were introduced to monitor corrective activity, review root causes, validate proposed corrections, track progress against remediation plans and strengthen preventative and detective controls designed to reduce the risk of similar issues arising in future.

The MOD first identified that there was a potential issue relating to the application of National Insurance abatements in November 2024. Further extensive work was subsequently undertaken to establish the full extent of the issue, determine the affected population and validate individual cases before corrective action could commence. Corrective activity commenced following identification of the affected population, completion of calculation and assurance activity, and approval of the proposed corrective approach. Revision of affected awards and notification of individuals commenced in January 2026.

We recognise that this situation may cause uncertainty for those affected and continue to provide comprehensive one-to-one welfare support from Veterans Services Welfare managers. Anyone who believes repayment may not be possible, or could cause financial hardship should contact the Ministry of Defence using the details provide in their letters.

Individuals can make a defence against recovery based on an assessment of their personal circumstances. Guidance on valid reasons for disputing repayment can be found in Managing Public Money - Annex 4.11. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/managing-public-money

The Ministry of Defence is currently processing Cash Equivalent Value (CEV) requests received in April 2026. For members with more complex circumstances, and for pensioner Remedy cases where implementation of the guidance is still being finalised, the request date being processed may be earlier than April 2026.

The legislative deadline for all schemes is that CEVs should be provided to members within three months of the request. We are aware this is being exceeded at present in some cases. Some cases are currently taking longer due to the impact of 2015 Pension Remedy and implementation of revised actuarial factors.

The Ministry of Defence is currently processing Cash Equivalent Value (CEV) requests received in April 2026. For members with more complex circumstances, and for pensioner Remedy cases where implementation of the guidance is still being finalised, the request date being processed may be earlier than April 2026.

The legislative deadline for all schemes is that CEVs should be provided to members within three months of the request. We are aware this is being exceeded at present in some cases. Some cases are currently taking longer due to the impact of 2015 Pension Remedy and implementation of revised actuarial factors.