This Sunday marks the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice which ended the First World War.
With 100 days until this Armistice Centenary, the Royal British Legion launched its mass movement, on 3rd August, to say ‘Thank You’ the First World War generation who served, sacrificed and changed our world – with all communities encouraged to join and hundreds of community events organised.
Remember Together, a new initiative from British Future and the Royal British Legion, also launched last week to bring people from different backgrounds together to mark Remembrance and the centenary of the WW1 Armistice.
There is increasing awareness that Remembrance could, should and does belong to all of us - whatever our politics, ethnicity or faith. The armies of 1914-18 looked more like the Britain of 2018 than that of its day. British troops fought alongside soldiers of different colours and creeds from across the Commonwealth, including over a million Indian soldiers, 400,000 of them Muslims from present-day Pakistan.
This shared history of service and contribution is something that we can all commemorate in Britain and the UK.
Our motion calls on this Assembly to honour the contribution of those who have served and continue to serve in our Armed Forces.
I led a short debate here in January 2008 supporting the Legion’s “Honour the Covenant” Campaign, concluding that this must be fought until it is won– and welcomed the publication of the Armed Forces Covenant in May 2011, introducing a statutory duty from 2012 to lay before UK Parliament an annual report which considers the effects of service on Regulars and Reservists, veterans, their families and the bereaved – and to also examine areas of potential disadvantage and the need for special provision where appropriate.
The Welsh Government and all Local Authorities in Wales signed the Covenant and subscribed to work with partner organisations to uphold its principles.
However, there has not yet been an independent review of progress and delivery across the whole of Wales since the Covenant was established.
In our debate on Support for the Armed Forces last year, the Cabinet Secretary said “Members should have no doubt about the importance that this Government attaches to the delivery of the covenant in Wales”.
However, concerns remain in regard to its implementation, with and in ensuring Veterans are aware of this support.
Last year’s review of the “Implementation of the Armed Forces Covenant in Wales” by the Assembly Cross Party Group on Armed Forces and Cadets explored how services in Wales were fulfilling their obligations under the Armed Forces Covenant.
The Group found that since the introduction of the Covenant there had been good work across Wales in delivering its aims, with public services being more aware.
Despite positive developments, however, it found that there is insufficient accountability to ensure that organisations subscribed to the Covenant are actually fulfilling their obligations.
The Armed Forces Covenant states that no one who has served in the Armed Forces should face disadvantage and, in specific circumstances, can expect special consideration in regard to their NHS Care.
Despite this, however, Veterans and their families have faced inconsistencies when accessing health care in Wales, with the third and charitable sectors often having to deliver the specialist and rehabilitation services.
Adherence to - and implementation of - the Covenant varies greatly across Wales’ health boards, as evidenced by the recent questions submitted to each health board by the Welsh Conservatives.
Only Abertawe Bro Morganwg has a dedicated budget for Veterans. In the last three financial years £242,000 has been allocated there, but the six remaining health boards only use core allocations to fund Veteran’s needs.
Only Aneurin Bevan, Cardiff and Vale, Powys and Hywel Dda Health Boards have adopted the Welsh Government 2017 Guidance in full – and Betsi Cadwaladr stated that it was only adhering to Welsh Government guidance published in 2008. This was particularly concerning as BCUHB stated, “GPs [are] to consider when making referrals whether, in their clinical opinion, priority treatment may be appropriate as the patient’s condition relates to military service. Where this is the case, GPs are asked to record the veteran status as part of the referral.
Staff training and awareness of the Covenant varied greatly across the health boards, with little formal training of its requirements taking place.
Medical Records teams in Aneurin Bevan and Cardiff and Vale had been trained in priority and fast track referrals, with Cardiff and Vale currently working with the MoD on a training package for primary care.
Yet Abertawe Bro Morganwg had merely circulated protocol guidance, Powys had undergone training and awareness raising at board level only. AND Hywel Dda and Betsi had delivered no formal training.
Although the Covenant applies to Local Health Board employees, I was concerned when I recently accompanied a Health Board employee with diagnosed military PTSD to a meeting with his employers, when the Health Board stated their understanding that the Covenant only covered him as a patient.
I spoke at the 2013 launch of “Change Step”, a support and peer-mentoring service provided by veterans for veterans seeking help for mental health, loneliness or addiction problems, led by North Wales based Charity CAIS.
Change Step has helped more than 1,700 veterans and their families since its launch, yet its reliance on bid funding presents a long standing challenge when seeking to provide essential services.
The Cabinet Secretary will no doubt tell us about the amount of money given to Veterans NHS Wales, which provides Veterans living in Wales with assessment and psychological treatment for mental health problems, including PTSD.
Despite this, Veterans NHS Wales state that without extra Welsh Government they will be unable to continue reducing waiting times for treatment.
They have told us that they “are reducing waiting lists for treatment by employing 3 full time veteran therapists with charity money from Help for Heroes, that have completed the first year- but that in September 2020 these posts will go and waiting lists are likely to rise again without an increase in funding from Welsh Government”.
They also state that in Scotland and Northern Ireland, large scale studies on the needs of veterans and ex forces personnel have been carried out by the Forces in Mind Trust - and are calling for a similar study in Wales to help inform policy and practice.
Housing is key to veterans and their families. First Choice Housing Association led the way on this in Wales and secured funding from the MOD Veterans Accommodation Fund to deliver homes across Wales.
Alabaré’s Wales “Homes for Veterans” Initiative delivers supported housing for veterans struggling to adjust to the civilian world.
Working together, First Choice and Alabaré delivered the ambitious self-build project for veterans in Wrexham, the third residence in North Wales to be managed by “Wales Homes for Veterans”, which took the Charity’s provision across Wales to 57.
The Welsh Government has announced a Housing Referrals Pathway for veterans and ‘updated guidance’.
However, provision of leaflets and advice cards do not address the concerns of how housing officers themselves, who provide the necessary support, are able to manage with complex cases of re-homing veterans.
Better integration of housing, health and care services, alongside support for schemes such as those provided by First Choice and Alabaré, is therefore needed from the Welsh Government – especially when there has been a large reduction in the number of veteran households accepted by Local Authorities as being in priority housing need since the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 was introduced.
Woody’s Lodge is a charity providing safe spaces for armed service veterans, recent leavers, reservists and those who served in the emergency services to socialise and access a range of health and social services, and interact with people who have had similar experiences.
Following the success of their first established base in south Wales, Woody’s Lodge is now opening a site at Eirias Park in Colwyn Bay for veterans across north Wales.
Alongside Age Cymru and Age Alliance Wales, Woody’s Lodge is a partner in Project 360°, funded by the UK Chancellor’s Aged Veteran’s Fund supporting older veterans across Wales.
Endorsed by the Armed Forces Community and Armed Services Heads, the review by the Cross Party Group on Armed Forces and Cadets referred to earlier found that in order to uphold the Covenant, the Welsh Government should consider the appointment of an Armed Forces Commissioner for Wales to improve the accountability of public sector organisations for the delivery of the Armed Forces Covenant.
It said the Commissioner should be required to publish an annual report on adherence to the Covenant to be laid in the National Assembly for Wales.
Whilst welcome, the appointment of Covenant – funded Armed Forces Liaison Officers across Welsh Local Authorities does not meet this requirement.
Responding to me yesterday, the Cabinet Secretary side stepped this by stating instead that it was the role of the National Assembly to ensure accountability of Government. Is he therefore saying that we don’t need Commissioners in other areas including Children, Older People and Future Generations?
One hundred years after the signing of the treaty that led to the end of the First World War, the Armed Forces Covenant is a Covenant which must endure.