Written evidence submitted by the Department of Health and Social Care

Thank you for your letter of 26 February addressed to the Secretary of State regarding the Defence Committee’s Inquiry into the Armed Forces Covenant. I am responding as the Minister with responsibility for Armed Forces and Veterans’ health.

I would like to first acknowledge the contribution of our Armed Forces. Those who serve, and those who have served, have spent their careers defending and protecting us. The Government is proud of the courage and dedication of our Armed Forces. The Armed Forces Covenant (“the Covenant”) is an important promise by the nation in recognition for their contribution and service to us all. I fully support the principles and aims of the Covenant.

In relation to healthcare, a key principle of the Covenant is that the Armed Forces Community experiences no disadvantage in accessing timely, comprehensive, and effective healthcare. In certain situations, special consideration may be appropriate.

The introduction of the Covenant legal duty to have “due regard” to the principles of the Covenant was introduced in 2022 and several National Health Service bodies in England are already in scope. NHS England takes its responsibilities under the Covenant very seriously. While there are many NHS services which can and should be accessed in the same way regardless of serving status, the NHS has also put in place several bespoke services to meet the needs of veterans.

I am supportive of the policy proposal to extend the Covenant legal duty to include Government Departments across the United Kingdom, including the Department of Health and Social Care. Given the successful impact of the Covenant legal duty to date in raising awareness of the Covenant at local levels across the healthcare system, I believe that extending the Covenant legal duty to Government Departments will provide a strong foundation to drive further improvements leading to better support for the whole Armed Forces community. A key benefit will be to drive consistency between policy design and operational delivery. It will also ensure that the health and social care needs of our Armed Forces are proactively considered in the policy design process to ensure any disadvantage is identified early and mitigated against from the start.

In relation to healthcare, NHS England have a well-established range of services to meet the health needs of the Armed Forces Community. There is a wide range of directly commissioned services for Serving personnel and families registered with Defence Medical Services as well as bespoke services for veterans. These services are embedded in the system, and in developing future health policy we will build on the work and progress made by the NHS.

I am wholly supportive of the aim to bring Adult Social Care explicitly in scope of the Covenant policy areas for the first time. Currently, Local Authorities are within scope of the Covenant only in relation to education, housing and healthcare. With this change, Local Authorities will now have to pay due regard to the Covenant when considering their social care duties, and we will work with them to ensure they are delivering services that meet the needs of the Armed Forces Community.

I am committed to working with the Ministry of Defence on this policy as well as in ensuring that the Armed Forces Community is able to access the health and social care support it needs.

May I take this opportunity to thank all those who serve, those who have served, and their families who play a key role in protecting our nation.

Baroness Merron

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Patient Safety, Women’s Health and Mental Health

14th March 2025