House of Commons Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant in Northern Ireland First Report of Session 2013–14 Report, together with formal minutes, oral and written evidence Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed 10 July 2013 HC 51 [Incorporating HC 922 i-iv, Session 2012–13] Published on 17 July 2013 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £20.00 Northern Ireland Affairs Committee The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Northern Ireland Office (but excluding individual cases and advice given by the Crown Solicitor); and other matters within the responsibilities of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (but excluding the expenditure, administration and policy of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Northern Ireland and the drafting of legislation by the Office of the Legislative Counsel). Current membership Mr Laurence Robertson MP (Conservative, Tewkesbury) (Chair) Mr David Anderson MP (Labour, Blaydon) Mr Joe Benton MP (Labour, Bootle) Oliver Colvile MP (Conservative, Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport) Mr Stephen Hepburn MP (Labour, Jarrow) Lady Hermon MP (Independent, North Down) Kate Hoey MP (Labour, Vauxhall) Naomi Long MP (Alliance, Belfast East) Jack Lopresti MP (Conservative, Filton and Bradley Stoke) Dr Alasdair McDonnell MP (SDLP, Belfast South) Nigel Mills MP (Conservative, Amber Valley) Ian Paisley MP (DUP, North Antrim) Andrew Percy MP (Conservative, Brigg and Goole) David Simpson MP (DUP, Upper Bann) Powers The committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No 152. These are available on the Internet via www.parliament.uk. Publication The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House. All publications of the Committee (including press notices) are on the Internet at www.parliament.uk/niacom. Current Committee staff The current staff of the Committee are Mike Clark (Clerk), Duma Langton (Inquiry Manager), Edward Faulkner (Senior Committee Assistant), Ravi Abhayaratne (Committee Support Assistant) and Jessica Bridges-Palmer (Media Officer). Contacts All correspondence should be addressed to the Clerk of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA. The telephone number for general enquiries is 020 7219 2173; the Committee’s email address is [email protected]. Implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant in Northern Ireland 1 Contents Report Page Summary 3 1 Introduction 5 The Armed Forces Covenant 5 Our inquiry 6 2 Implementation across the UK 7 Annual Report on the Covenant 7 3 Barriers to implementation in Northern Ireland? 9 Equality legislation 9 Political considerations 13 Personal security 15 4 The current situation in Northern Ireland 16 Assessment of disadvantage to the Armed Forces in NI 16 Armed Forces organisations in Northern Ireland 17 Measures put in place by Northern Ireland Departments 19 Healthcare, housing and education issues 21 Housing and homelessness 21 Healthcare 22 Education 24 The Ulster Defence Regiment and Royal Irish (Home Service) Regiment Aftercare Service 25 Engagement by HM Government 26 Comparisons with Scotland and Wales 27 5 Future progress 28 Improved engagement with the Northern Ireland Executive 28 Role of HM Government 29 Projects to support the Armed Forces Community 30 Drop-in centres 30 Provision of information 31 Veterans Treatment Courts 32 Insurance cover 32 Community Covenants 33 Debate on the Armed Forces Covenant 33 6 Conclusion 34 Conclusions and recommendations 35 Annex – Meetings held in Washington DC, 10-12 June 2013 39 Appendix – Section 2 of the Armed Forces Act 2011 44 2 Optional header Formal Minutes 47 Witnesses 48 List of printed written evidence 49 List of Reports from the Committee during the current Parliament 50 Implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant in Northern Ireland 3 Summary The Armed Forces Covenant was published in May 2011, and set out the relationship between the people of the United Kingdom, Her Majesty’s Government and the Armed Forces Community. The Covenant stressed the moral obligation the nation has to the Armed Forces Community, and stated that members of the Armed Forces Community should not be disadvantaged as a result of service and that, in certain cases, special consideration was appropriate. HM Government, the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government have published detailed reports outlining the support offered to the Armed Forces Community, and how the Covenant is being implemented in England, Scotland and Wales. As yet, no such report has been produced by the Northern Ireland Executive. As part of our inquiry we have looked at areas where progress has been made in Northern Ireland in relation to the Armed Forces Covenant, and areas where more needs to be done. Mechanisms which have been put in place which work well and are in keeping with the spirit of the Armed Forces Covenant include: the Northern Ireland Department for Health, Social Security and Public Safety’s protocol for ensuring equitable access to health and social care services for the Armed Forces, and the Armed Forces Liaison Forum that was set up to support it, and the Ulster Defence Regiment and Royal Irish (Home Service) Regiment Aftercare Service, which delivers bespoke support services to veterans of these regiments and is highly valued by the Armed Forces Community in Northern Ireland. Due to devolution, there is variation across the regions of the UK in relation to the provision of health, housing and education. There are some specific benefits that exist in Great Britain but are not available in Northern Ireland, including improved access to IVF treatment, priority in accessing NHS healthcare, additional priority in accessing social housing, and certain educational entitlements. However, the evidence we received from Armed Forces charities and the Commander of 38 (Irish) Brigade indicated that local solutions could be found in most cases where the above differences affected members of the Armed Forces Community, and that there was no significant disadvantage to veterans who chose to settle in Northern Ireland. We were also told by Ministers from HM Government that they were working with various Northern Ireland departments to make progress on a number of the issues above. There are still a number of areas where improvements could be made. We have made recommendations which include the following: HM Government should respond to the identified needs of the Armed Forces Community in Northern Ireland, and report on how these will be met; 4 Optional header The MoD should approach individual Northern Ireland departments for contributions to future Annual Reports on the Armed Forces Covenant, so that the Secretary of State for Defence can report on progress in Northern Ireland, and on those areas where more needs to be done; and The NIO and MoD should work with the Northern Ireland Executive towards the appointment of a representative from the Executive to the Covenant Reference Group. In this report, conclusions are printed in bold and recommendations are printed in bold italics. Implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant in Northern Ireland 5 1 Introduction The Armed Forces Covenant 1. The Armed Forces Covenant was published in May 2011 and set out the relationship between the people of the United Kingdom, Her Majesty’s Government and the Armed Forces Community. It stressed the moral obligation the nation had to the Armed Forces Community, made up of serving and former members of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, the Army and the Royal Air Force, together with their families. Specifically, the Covenant stated: Those who serve in the Armed Forces, whether Regular or Reserve, those who have served in the past, and their families, should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services. Special consideration is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most such as the injured and the bereaved.1 (Emphasis supplied) The Covenant identified fifteen themes within its scope, which included: Healthcare, Education, Housing, Benefits and Tax, Commercial Products and Services, Transition and Support After-Service. Many of these services are provided by the UK’s devolved administrations, thereby making delivery of the Covenant a matter equally for HM Government and the respective devolved administrations. 2. We unreservedly endorse the key principles of the Armed Forces Covenant: members of the Armed Forces Community should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens, and special consideration may be appropriate in some cases. 3. The Covenant is recognised in the Armed Forces Act 2011, which cites the principles laid out in the Covenant, and which created a statutory duty on the Secretary of State for Defence to produce an Annual Report outlining progress on the Armed Forces Covenant.2 The then Secretary of State for Defence, Rt Hon Liam Fox MP, described the thinking behind recognising the principles of the Covenant in law when he announced the Covenant in May 2011, stating: In deciding how best to recognise the covenant in law, the Government have had to maintain a careful balance. On the one hand, we do not want to see the chain of command undermined or the military permanently involved in human rights cases in the European courts. On the other, we must ensure that the legitimate aspirations of the wider service community, the armed forces charities and the British public for our armed forces are met. We believe that a sensible way forward – one that will give the right kind of legal basis to the armed forces covenant for the first time in our history – is to enshrine the 1 The Armed Forces Covenant, May 2011 2 The relevant section of the Armed Forces Act 2011 is included with this Report as an Appendix.