§ Mr. KeyTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel have(a) applied for and (b) been granted (i) premature voluntary retirement and (ii) purchase of their discharge, for each of the three services by rank and by length of service in each of the last five years. [91135]
§ Mr. Doug HendersonAll applications for Premature Voluntary Retirement by eligible Naval Service and RAF Officers are granted. Not all applications for Premature Voluntary Retirement by Army Officers are granted, but only figures for the number of applications granted are available centrally.
All applications for Premature Voluntary Retirement by eligible Other Ranks in all three Services are granted.
I am placing details of the number of Premature Voluntary Retirements from the Armed Forces over the last five years in the Library of the House. This 613W information is available by rank but not by length of service. Details of Premature Voluntary Retirements by Army Officers are not available for the years 1994–95 and 1995–96. The figures provided do not include Gurkhas, Royal Irish (Home Service) personnel, Locally Employed Personnel, Reservists mobilised for duties associated with Bosnia, and Full Time Reserve Service personnel.
Officers from all three Services are no longer required to purchase their discharge. Similarly, the Naval Service and the RAF no longer require Other Ranks to purchase their discharge. Only Army Other Ranks who enlisted on Notice Engagement prior to 1 January 1991 can apply to purchase their discharge, and details of those who have done so are not held centrally.