Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Office for Veterans’ Affairs

Thursday 25 March 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Office for Veterans' Affairs has taken steps to promote the interests of veterans, including a guaranteed interview scheme and a 10 million mental health care pathway.
  • Fay Jones asked about creating a veterans' commissioner position for Wales to work across Welsh and UK Governments.
  • The Minister acknowledged the importance of veterans' commissioners in ensuring consistent care across different regions.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Fay Jones
Veterans
Context

The Office for Veterans' Affairs is under scrutiny for its effectiveness in promoting veterans' interests.

Question

What recent steps has the Office for Veterans' Affairs taken to promote the interests of veterans?

Answer from Johnny Mercer

I am incredibly proud of the work of the Office for Veterans' Affairs, which has fundamentally shifted the dial when it comes to looking after our veterans in this country. Whether it is the guaranteed interview scheme, the £10 million mental health care pathway that we established last week, veterans' railcards or national insurance contribution holidays, we are making slow and irreversible progress in this domain, and we will continue to do so under this Government.

Answered
Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Get updates like this by email
Q2 Fay Jones
Wales Veterans
Context

A veterans' commissioner is being established in Wales to address the unique challenges faced by Welsh veterans.

Question

Will the Minister confirm that work to create a post of a veterans' commissioner for Wales is under way at pace and that the postholder will work across both Welsh and UK Governments to ensure that all hurdles for Welsh veterans can be overcome?

Answer from Johnny Mercer

I pay huge tribute to my hon. Friend for campaigning so energetically on this issue. Veterans' commissioners are incredibly important across the country. There is no doubt that in some areas there is excellent veterans' care, and in other places not so much. What this Government are absolutely committed to is levelling up that experience as a veteran across the UK. We have a veterans' commissioner in Scotland, and in Northern Ireland for the first time. I am delighted that the Welsh Government are working with us on this. We will deliver it so that the whole United Kingdom becomes the best place in the world in which to be an armed forces veteran.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Confirmation of work pace and specific mechanisms for cross-governmental cooperation were not provided

Was this summary accurate? Tell us

How accurate was this summary? (1 = poor, 5 = spot on)

Get updates like this by email