Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Improving Service Life: Personnel and Families

Monday 18 November 2024 · 4 questions

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 4 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Service morale fell to record lows over the last year, with more personnel leaving than joining each month.
  • The Government announced a package of 20 hours of funded wraparound childcare for families of personnel deployed overseas.
  • The continuity of education allowance will be increased to reflect the rise in school fees from January.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Beccy Cooper Lab Worthing West
Defence
Context

Service morale has fallen to record lows, with over 300 more full-time personnel leaving the forces each month than joining.

Question

What steps are being taken to improve service life for serving personnel and their families? Over the last year, service morale fell to record lows, with over 300 more full-time personnel leaving the forces than joining each month. What steps is the Government taking?

Answer from John Healey

Over the last year, service morale fell to record lows, with over 300 more full-time personnel leaving the forces than joining each month. We cannot reverse these deep-set problems overnight, but this Government are putting people at the heart of our defence plans, and today will see the Second Reading of our legislation to establish an independent Armed Forces Commissioner to improve service life.

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Q2 Beccy Cooper Lab Worthing West
Defence Children & Families
Context

The Government announced a package including 20 hours of funded wraparound childcare for eligible families overseas.

Question

Can the Minister assure us that practical support like childcare funding will be a fundamental pillar of the Government's support for forces families? The package announced this weekend of 20 hours of funded wraparound childcare for families deployed overseas is very welcome. Can the Minister please assure us that this type of practical assistance will be a fundamental pillar of the Government's support for forces families?

Answer from John Healey

I can indeed. Supporting our service families is really important, especially when they are far from home, and this scheme will reduce the burden of childcare costs for those eligible families overseas. This is a Government who are delivering for defence and putting our forces personnel at the heart of our defence plans.

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Q3 Caroline Dinenage Con Gosport
Defence
Context

The RFA is vital to the sustainability of the Royal Navy, but its pay and conditions often do not match those of the armed forces or civil service.

Question

What can be said to reassure RFA members that they are valued? The Royal Fleet Auxiliary is often overlooked yet it plays a critical role in our maritime operations. What can the Secretary of State say to members of the RFA to reassure them that they are valued?

Answer from John Healey

Over the last decade or more, we have been expecting more of those members of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. They play a critical role in our maritime operations and they are highly valued as part of our services community. We see an important future for that service as part of building Britain's defences for the future, and we are putting forces personnel and RFA personnel at the heart of our plans to ensure that we are more secure at home and strong abroad.

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Q4 James Cartlidge Con South Suffolk
NHS Education Employment
Context

Families are facing a new tax on school fees, leading to instability in children's education.

Question

Will the continuity of education allowance be uplifted to fund 100% of the new tax on those fees? Thousands of families will receive an unwelcome Christmas present this year with a 20% tax on school fees for independent boarding schools. Given that the new tax is entirely due to Government policy, will the Secretary of State confirm that the continuity of education allowance will be uplifted to fund 100% of these fees?

Answer from John Healey

We will uprate the continuity of education allowance to reflect the increase in school fees from January. We will do that so that the allowance continues to maintain the schooling of the many children of personnel that are deployed. Our mission as a Government is to lift the morale of our services. That is why we are investing in our servicemen and women, supporting their families and starting to fix the problems of the last 14 years that we have inherited.

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