Broken Covenant

Watch part two

In the UK there exists a ‘duty of care’. A duty which Britain acknowledges it owes to its armed forces.

Known as the military covenant, it is an unspoken pact between society and the military that dates back to the reign of Henry VIII, and which was formally codified as a ‘covenant’ in 2000.

The ‘duty of care’ to troops includes paying towards physical and mental healthcare, access to accommodation and also the provision of support for bereaved families.

Yet out of the 25,000 men and women that were discharged from the military services in 2007, it is estimated that 10 per cent will live on the poverty line and face homelessness. To date there is over 230 veteran aid charities operating in the UK.

In February 2006, plans for a ‘Veterans day’ were announced by Gordon Brown, the then finance minister and current prime minister, who said the aim was to ensure that the contribution of veterans was never forgotten.

In November 2007, Lieutenant-Colonel Stuart Tootal resigned from the British army over “the governments appalling treatment of the troops”.

Sir Richard Dannatt, the head of the British army, said his troops felt “devalued, angry and were suffering from Iraq fatigue”. He went on to say “the military covenant is clearly out of kilter”.

Veterans day was introduced three years ago and is now incorporated into armed forces day, a new national day announced by Kevan Jones, the veterans minister, to be celebrated this year on June 27.

People & Power follows Stuart Griffiths, a veteran who became homeless after leaving the armed forces and who now works as a photographer raising awareness for veterans who feel that the military covenant and the government’s duty of care is not being upheld.

This episode of People & Power airs from Saturday, January 24, 2009 at the following times GMT:
Saturday: 0130, 1230, 1930; Sunday: 0330, 1030, 2330; Monday: 0730.