Armed Forces: Suicide

HL Deb 16 July 2003 vol 651 cc124-5WA

Lord Rogan

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many deaths by suicide were recorded among members of the Armed Forces since January 2003, and for each year for the past five years. [HL3614]

Lord Bach

In the period 1998 to 2002 there were 78 suicide and open verdict deaths among UK regular service personnel. The Ministry of Defence does not currently have information on verdicts made by coroners (England & Wales and N. Ireland) or the Procurator Fiscal (Scotland) for accidental or violent deaths that have occurred in 2003. A breakdown of the suicides and open verdict deaths by year of occurrence is given below.

Suicide and open verdict deaths in the UK regular Armed Forces, 1998–2002
Year of Death	Number
1998	16
1999	18
2000	27
2001	10
2002	7
Total	78

Note:

Suicide and open verdicts are subject to change as outstanding coroners verdicts are confirmed. This could lead to further increases in due course.