§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department is taking to address the issue of age discrimination. [109442]
§ Dr. MoonieThe Ministry of Defence employs some 90,000 Civil Servants, and it is departmental policy that individuals should not be discriminated against on any grounds, including age. We will be keeping our policy under review against the background of any changes in the law relating to age that may result from the implementation of the EC Employment Directive. The armed forces have an exemption from the age (and disability) provisions of the Article 13 Directive.