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3

 

House of Commons

 
 

Tuesday 8 February 2011

 

Select Committee

 

New Amendments handed in are marked thus Parliamentary Star

 

Armed Forces Bill


 

Gemma Doyle

 

2

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  leave out lines 5 to 10 and insert—

 

‘(1)    

The External Reference Group must in November of each calendar year prepare

 

for the Secretary of State an armed forces covenant report. The Secretary of State

 

shall lay the report before Parliament.’.

 

Gemma Doyle

 

3

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  leave out lines 11 and 12 and insert—

 

    

‘The armed forces covenant report shall cover the following fields as they apply

 

to service people—

 

(a)    

education;

 

(b)    

accommodation;

 

(c)    

healthcare;

 

(d)    

mental healthcare;

 

(e)    

pensions and benefits;

 

(f)    

employment and training;

 

(g)    

support for reservists and their employers;

 

(h)    

the running of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme;

 

(i)    

progress on armed forces rehabilitation services; and

 

(j)    

other such fields as the External Reference Group may determine.’.

 

Mark Lancaster

 

1

 

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  12,  at end insert—

 

‘(2A)    

The armed forces covenant report must also include analysis of the effects of

 

membership, or former membersip, of the reserve forces in such fields as the

 

Secretary of State may determine.’.

 

Gemma Doyle

 

4

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  42,  leave out ‘Secretary of State’ and insert ‘External


 
 

Select Committee: 8 February 2011                      

4

 

Armed Forces Bill, continued

 
 

Reference Group’.

 

Gemma Doyle

 

5

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  44,  at end add—

 

‘(7)    

In this section “External Reference Group” shall mean an independently chaired

 

body of interested parties, appointed by the Cabinet Office, who represent the

 

armed forces, families, veterans and reservists community, to monitor progress

 

and hold departments to account in the delivery of government obligations arising

 

from the Armed Forces Covenant. The External Reference Group will continue

 

to produce a publicly available Annual Report on the Military Covenant.’.

 

Mr Kevan Jones

 

Gemma Doyle

 

6

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  44,  at end add—

 

‘(7)    

The Secretary of State must by Order through Statutory Instrument establish a

 

written Military Covenant (henceforth referred to as “the Covenant”) which sets

 

out the legal requirement for public bodies to ensure that service people must not

 

be disadvantaged by virtue of what they do, and that this will sometimes call for

 

special treatment. No Order establishing a Military Covenant shall be made

 

unless a draft of the Order, prepared after public consultation, has been laid before

 

and approved by a resolution of both Houses of Parliament. An Order to review

 

the Covenant would be made every five years and would not be passed unless a

 

draft of the Order, prepared after public consultation, has been laid before and

 

approved by a resolution of both Houses of Parliament.

 

(8)    

In this section “public bodies” means—

 

(a)    

United Kingdom government departments;

 

(b)    

devolved administrations;

 

(c)    

local authorities; and

 

(d)    

National Health Service trusts.’.

 

Mr Kevan Jones

 

Gemma Doyle

 

7

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  44,  at end add—

 

‘(7)    

The existing network of Armed Forces Advocates will be extended through the

 

nomination of supporting advocates at regional and local level to ensure that local

 

authorities work together to identify and resolve issues in local policy or the

 

delivery of services that may affect service people.

 

(8)    

In this section “Armed Forces Advocate” means a civil servant nominated to

 

resolve policy or legislative issues that may affect service people.’.

 

Mr Kevan Jones

 

Gemma Doyle

 

8

 

Parliamentary Star    

Clause  2,  page  2,  line  44,  at end add—

 

‘(7)    

The Parliamentary and Local Government Ombudsman shall have the duty to

 

investigate complaints from service personnel that a public body or local

 

authority has failed to meet the commitments outlined in the Covenant.’.

 


 
 

Select Committee: 8 February 2011                      

5

 

Armed Forces Bill, continued

 
 

Order of the House [10 January 2011]

 

That the following provisions shall apply to the Armed Forces Bill:

 

Select Committee

 

1.    

The Bill shall be committed to a Select Committee.

 

2.    

The Select Committee shall report the Bill to the House on or before 10

 

March 2011.

 

Committee of the whole House, consideration and Third Reading

 

3.    

On report from the Select Committee the Bill shall be re-committed to a

 

Committee of the whole House.

 

4.    

Proceedings in Committee of the whole House on re-committal, any

 

proceedings on consideration and proceedings on Third Reading shall be

 

completed at one day’s sitting.

 

5.    

Proceedings in Committee of the whole House and any proceedings on

 

consideration shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a

 

conclusion one hour before the moment of interruption on the day on which

 

those proceedings are commenced.

 

6.    

Proceedings on Third Reading shall (so far as not previously concluded) be

 

brought to a conclusion one hour after the commencement of those

 

proceedings or at the moment of interruption on that day, whichever is the

 

earlier.

 

7.    

Standing Order No. 83B (Programming committees) shall not apply to

 

proceedings in Committee of the whole House and on consideration and

 

Third Reading.

 

Other proceedings

 

8.    

Any other proceedings on the Bill (including any proceedings on

 

consideration of Lords Amendments or on any further messages from the

 

Lords) may be programmed.

 


 
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Revised 8 February 2011