Oral Answers to Questions

Amanda Martin Excerpts

Monday 15th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Al Carns]

It is not lost on me that the testing and trialling of systems, in both the maritime and the air space, is full of regulatory issues and hurdles. We have had a couple of meetings with the Department for Transport, and we have a firm grasp of the problem. We now need to move this forward and unlock legislation to ensure that it is easier and far faster for those companies not only to develop cutting-edge technology and get it into the open market but to procure it for defence.

[Amanda Martin (Portsmouth North) (Lab)]

5. What steps he is taking to improve support for female veterans.

[Joe Morris (Hexham) (Lab)]

23. What steps he is taking to improve support for women veterans.

[The Minister for Veterans and People (Louise Sandher-Jones)]

Engaging and supporting the women who have served in our armed forces is an important part of our new veterans strategy and a priority that is deeply personal to me as a veteran myself. As well as our commitments across the strategy, we will specifically be taking forward plans to establish a new women veterans forum and an oral history project to improve public understanding and recognition of the experiences and contributions of women veterans in keeping the nation safe.

[Amanda Martin]

I would like to thank my hon. Friend for her service and for her support in this area. In the last two years, changes have been made to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary maternity policy that prevent new parents from taking back-to-back shore assignments, which are crucial to balancing seafaring with young families. These changes are especially detrimental to families where both parents are in the RFA and raise serious concerns about compliance with employment law. Given the retention crisis in the RFA, does the Minister think that the maternity policy provides adequate flexibility for families, and will she meet me and those affected to discuss this important issue?

[Louise Sandher-Jones]

We are, of course, committed to supporting families across defence, and we recognise the extraordinary service that RFA sailors give to this country. As I have previously written to my hon. Friend, the maternity and parental support package provided by the RFA includes enhanced leave entitlements and tailored assistance through mechanisms such as occupational health. While consecutive shore postings have never been a Defence policy, the RFA does support employees to use flexibilities within that offer, and I would be happy to meet her to discuss this further.