The Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committees Bill is a Private Members Bill introduced by Robin Millar MP.
The Bill is supported by the Government and had Second Reading on 24 February 2023. The Bill passed Committee stage without amendment on 15 March 2023.
Third Reading is scheduled for 24 March 2023.
About Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committees
There are 12 Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committees (VAPCs) across the United Kingdom.
The VAPC is an advisory non-departmental public body sponsored by the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
The VAPCs statutory functions are to engage at a local level with recipients of the War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation schemes, raise awareness of welfare services, and make representations and recommendations to the MOD on local veterans' issues.
Legislative basis
VAPCs, then known as War Pensions Committees, were established by section 25 of the Social Security Act 1989.
Regulations are set out in the War Pensions Committees Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/3180), as amended by the War Pensions Committees (Amendment) Regulations 2017.
About the Bill
The Bill would widen their current statutory functions to “bring them more in line with how they have operated in practice in recent years”. It would widen the cohort of veterans in the scope of the VAPCs’ statutory functions to include all veterans and their families, rather than just those in receipt of payments from the compensation schemes.
The Bill would move the statutory powers of the VAPCs from the Social Security Act 1989 into the Armed Forces Act 2006.
The Bill had Second Reading on 24 February 2023.
Committee Stage was held on 15 March 2023. Owen Thompson (SNP) moved four amendments, regarding the membership, scope and territorial extent of the VAPCs. The amendments were withdrawn and the Bill was reported without amendment. Third Reading is scheduled for 24 March 2023.
Further information, including the explanatory notes, can be found on Veterans Advisory and Pensions Committees Bill.