On 8th December 2021, the House of Lords debated Commons Reasons regarding amendments to the Armed Forces Bill. Votes were held on further amendments to the bill, in which a Bishop took part:
Votes: Armed Forces Bill
Tag: Armed Forces Bill 2021
Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans supports raising age of enlistment to 18
On 8th November 2021, the House of Lords debated the Armed Forces Bill in committee. The Bishop of St Albans spoke in the debate, supporting an amendment tabled by Baroness Massey of Darwen which would raise the age of enlistment into the armed forces to 18:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I rise to speak in support of Amendment 61 in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Massey of Darwen, to which I have added my name. I have done so because of my concerns about the well-being of young people and because I am not convinced that there are sufficient benefits in allowing the enlistment of young people of 16 or 17 rather than 18. Evidence and personal experience tell me that there is not.
I speak because of the experience of a member of my own family, so I know a story inside out, but I have also spoken to a number of parents whose children were recruited under the age of 18—and I have heard some very similar stories those described by the noble Baroness, Lady Massey, in her speech. I have no doubt that, for some early leavers recruited below the age of 18, the mental damage can take years to recover from. These recruits have the legal status as children and are entitled in law under safeguarding legislation to be protected from harm as far as possible.
There are a number of other reasons why I question this policy. Younger recruits suffer from very high drop-out rates. Official statistics show that, once enlisted, 30% of the Army’s under-18 recruits leave or are dismissed before they finish their training. They can find themselves out of work and education within months of joining, and these discharged recruits are not tracked, so we cannot speculate on how they fare after they leave the military. That being said, it would not be unreasonable to say that, had the option of joining up not been available, they would have stayed in full-time education, taken an apprenticeship or worked part time while undertaking a qualification. We are talking about not some small, troubled minority who failed to adapt adequately to military service, but nearly a third of all junior recruits. That is affecting some 700 young people a year, according to the Child Rights International Network.
Continue reading “Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans supports raising age of enlistment to 18”Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans tables amendment to mandate research into problem gambling and gambling related harm in the military
On 2nd November 2021, the House of Lords debated the Armed Forces Bill in committee. The Bishop of St Albans tabled an amendment to the bill which would require that the Ministry of Defence conduct research into gambling related harm in the military, and stood as part of a group of amendments focused on mental health and wellbeing in the armed forces:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I declare my interest as a vice-chair of Peers for Gambling Reform. I rise to speak to Amendment 60 in my name. I tabled it because I am concerned that the Ministry of Defence is not taking gambling-related harm in the military community sufficiently seriously. On two occasions in response to my concerns in this area, the Ministry of Defence has stated that it has seen no evidence, or does not hold information, suggesting that serving personnel are more prone to problem gambling than any other group in society.
At the same time, it was disappointing to hear that evidence from the United States that suggested that serving personnel were more prone to problem gambling did not constitute an evidence base for the UK Armed Forces. This leaves us with a clear impasse, where the Government refuse to accept research from abroad but, at the same time, do not commit to researching whether there is a problem.
Continue reading “Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans tables amendment to mandate research into problem gambling and gambling related harm in the military”Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans highlights mental health issues affecting members of the armed forces
On 7th September 2021, the Armed Forces Bill had its second reading in the House of Lords. The Bishop of St Albans welcomed the bill, and spoke on the importance of recognising the high levels of mental health issues faced by members of the armed forces:
The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I too want to pay tribute to our Armed Forces. In repaying their service, it is right, as the Armed Forces covenant states, that
“those who have served in the past, and their families, should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens”.
I welcome the provisions in the Bill enabling greater legal enforcement of the covenant in achieving this parity.
Continue reading “Armed Forces Bill: Bishop of St Albans highlights mental health issues affecting members of the armed forces”
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