§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research his Department has commissioned into the incidence and causes of homelessness among ex-service personnel; and what recent changes he has made to policy and practice to assist ex-service personnel. [32666]
§ Dr. Moonie[holding answer 6 February 2002]: The Ministry of Defence does not itself monitor homelessness among ex-service personnel. The Social Exclusion Unit report, published in 1998, identified that between one quarter and one fifth of rough sleepers had been in the armed forces at some stage, predominantly as national servicemen. The MOD has, therefore, been working in partnership with the Rough Sleeper's Unit (RSU) and the charitable sector to reduce some of the most acute cases of homelessness, those sleeping rough on the streets. In 1200W particular, preventative mechanisms have been put in place at pre-discharge, point of discharge and post-discharge to help the more vulnerable make a smoother transition to civilian life. Measures taken by RSU and its partners to date have reduced levels of rough sleeping by at least two-thirds in line with the Prime Minister's target and DTLR have confirmed that interim analysis of rough sleeping data collected in November 2001 shows that the percentage of rough sleepers with an armed forces background has decreased markedly since the 1998 SEU report. We welcome this as evidence of what is being achieved through closer co-operation within Government and with the voluntary sector.
We recognise that there is further work to be done in this area and, in particular, as part of the Veterans' Initiative, are looking at how we can improve resettlement arrangements for the most vulnerable service leavers. This would include addressing the risk of homelessness.