Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether official statistics on suicides in armed forces veterans will be published annually.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
The Office for Veterans’ Affairs, Office for National Statistics and the Ministry of Defence have collaboratively developed a new approach for calculating veteran suicides in England and Wales.
This year, the ONS published suicide statistics for 2021 using this new approach and it intends to continue publishing veteran suicide stats on a yearly basis.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an estimate of the number of veterans that have (a) died and (b) committed suicide whilst awaiting a final settlement of a claim to the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme since 2019.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The information requested cannot be provided without exceeding the disproportionate cost limit.
However, I can confirm that between 1 January 2019 and 31 March 2024, ten veterans whose next of kin decided to proceed with the active claim died before receiving an outcome of either an initial Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) injury/illness claim or an appeal. The figure includes claims which were still open on 31 March 2024.
The Ministry of Defence does not hold information on the cause of death where a claimant dies before receiving an outcome of claim under the AFCS. Therefore, it is not possible to identify veterans that have committed suicide whilst awaiting a claim outcome since 2019.
Mentions:
1: Paulette Hamilton (Lab - Birmingham, Erdington) What recent steps Veterans UK has taken to support veterans and their families with the cost of living - Speech Link
2: Kate Hollern (Lab - Blackburn) What recent steps Veterans UK has taken to support veterans and their families with the cost of living - Speech Link
3: Liz Twist (Lab - Blaydon) A new report from Northumbria University found that suicide among serving personnel and veterans could - Speech Link
4: Andrew Murrison (Con - South West Wiltshire) She will know that we have a defence suicide prevention strategy, which is reviewed regularly. - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: Andrew Murrison (Con - South West Wiltshire) The Veterans Welfare Service, for example, supports around 50,000 veterans every year, and the Office - Speech Link
2: Andrew Murrison (Con - South West Wiltshire) Friend the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs. - Speech Link
3: Liz Twist (Lab - Blaydon) Suicide rates among veterans under the age of 24 are two to four times higher than in the civilian population - Speech Link
4: Andrew Murrison (Con - South West Wiltshire) the suicide rate in our armed forces. - Speech Link
Mar. 05 2024
Source Page: Cabinet Office: ministerial gifts, hospitality, travel and meetings, October to December 2022Found: framework study Alex Burghart Nil Return Nil Return Nil Return Nil Return Johnny Mercer 2022-11-15 Suicide
Mentions:
1: Jim Shannon (DUP - Strangford) I wish to underline the issue for veterans separately, because I deal with veterans in my offices every - Speech Link
2: Maria Caulfield (Con - Lewes) Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) touched on the issues facing veterans. - Speech Link
Written Evidence Nov. 29 2023
Inquiry: Men's healthFound: While the suicide risk of military veterans from the UK Armed Forces is not higher than the general
Mentions:
1: None We must remember that it is not just expenditure on suicide prevention that dictates the suicide rates - Speech Link
2: None I was contemplating suicide. - Speech Link
3: Gallacher, Meghan (Con - Central Scotland) We have veterans groups for a purpose, we have Women’s Aid groups for a purpose, and I whole-heartedly - Speech Link
4: None We hear from veterans that they miss the camaraderie and they sometimes miss the dark humour used to - Speech Link
5: None We call it the suicide community or the suicide family, but we need to use those people much more. - Speech Link
Written Evidence Nov. 29 2023
Inquiry: Men's healthFound: with the aim to understand: the factors driving men’s lower and falling life expectancy; higher suicide
Mentions:
1: None of veterans at this year’s Pride event in London. - Speech Link
2: None Next year will see the expanded rollout of the Armed Forces veterans card to all veterans who served - Speech Link
3: None Today, we are throwing open the front door to our LGBT veterans. - Speech Link
4: Baroness Smith of Newnham (LD - Life peer) in part about next of kin and those who had service personnel who had died—perhaps who had committed suicide - Speech Link