Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Ministry of Defence

Oral Answers to Questions

Robert Flello Excerpts
Monday 10th October 2011

(12 years, 7 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Robert Flello Portrait Robert Flello (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Lab)
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T3. The Royal British Legion has said that the creation of the chief coroner“is essential to improving bereaved Armed Forces families’ experience of military inquests” and that Government proposals will“fail to meet the needs of bereaved Armed Forces families.” The Secretary of State’s rant about his budget shows that he has not read the Royal British Legion’s proposals, so will he, in the quiet moments that I am sure will follow later this afternoon, take the time to explain to the Cabinet Office and the Ministry of Justice that failing to introduce a chief coroner will be a betrayal of our brave military personnel?

Lord Robathan Portrait The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
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As I thought had been made pretty plain earlier, this is a matter for the Ministry of Justice, not the Ministry of Defence. However, I hope that everyone in the House would agree that the important thing is that well-trained coroners do a good job in their inquests on deceased service personnel. That is what we are working to achieve, and I know that the Ministry of Justice is determined that that shall happen.