§ Mr. YeoTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list consultations his Department has conducted since 1997; and when each consultation(a) opened and (b) closed. [97428]
§ Dr. MoonieThe Cabinet Office Code of Practice on Written Consultation applies to all formal national public consultation documents issued by Departments from 1 January 2001 and the information requested is not available before that date.
Since 1 January 2001, the following formal national public consultation documents have been issued by the Ministry of Defence:
Domestic violence by Service personnel is not tolerated under any circumstances, not least because of the detrimental impact that such incidents can have on morale, discipline and operational efficiency.
A tri-Service policy on domestic violence was issued in February 2002. The policy, which has now been implemented by the Services, sets out the roles and responsibilities of the chain of command and the welfare agencies in detecting and dealing with incidents of domestic violence and in providing confidential advice and support. The Services are proactive in increasing awareness about domestic violence to those in command and in publicising (via leaflets, posters and 135W web sites) the services available to possible victims. There are many agencies, both military and civilian, that exist to provide support to victims. The confidential support lines that are operated by the three Services are able to signpost callers to these support agencies. In cases where immediate or imminent harm is suspected the incident is reported to the most readily available police force; primacy rests with the local Home Department Police Force in United Kingdom whereas cases arising overseas are dealt with by the Service police.