FOREWORD
FOREWORD BY MARK LANCASTER TD MP
MINISTER FOR DEFENCE PERSONNEL AND VETERANS (MIN DPV)
I
am very grateful to have the opportunity to introduce myself to Envoy readers as the new Minister for Defence Personnel and Veterans. I might be new to the role but I am not new to
the Armed Forces, having spent 25 years as an Army Reservist serving in Bosnia, in Kososvo and most recently in Afghanistan. This experience has already influenced my approach to this job in three ways:
Firstly, by giving me a huge respect and admiration for the tireless work of the RAF across the world – whether in the air or on the ground. This year we commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, when we turned to ‘The Few’ to safeguard our nation's freedom. Today you are busier than ever doing just that in theatres across the globe from the Baltic to the Middle East.
Secondly, by giving me a first-hand appreciation of how military life can affect individuals and their families. Not least the primary need for good quality accommodation and decent access to local amenities – whether that’s your local GP or your local school; services that civilians often take for granted.
Thirdly, my experience has underlined the important role that the RAF Families Federation and the RAF Service charities play in the lives of the serving the RAF community, especially at times like now when so many are deployed.
I am determined, as Anna Soubry was before me, to do everything in my power to support you and to continue upholding the pledges enshrined in our Armed Forces Covenant. In this regard, I am fortunate to be starting from a strong foundation: We have started to make headway in providing better quality accommodation for Service families, and we have provided more help for those that want to buy their own homes. We have ploughed £450m from Libor fines from the banks into the Armed Forces community, and the RAF has benefited from recent welfare initiatives such as the Life
Improvement Grant (LIG) scheme, which has injected £3.98m across RAF Stations for community support projects. Many stations will use the funds to improve Single Living Accommodation and Mess facilities, alongside projects to refurbish communal areas, bringing in amenities such as coffee bars and more sports facilities. The RAF Benevolent Fund and RAF Association are also supporting projects ranging from play park provision to providing free Wi-Fi in communal areas.
But I know there's much more to do. So in the coming weeks and months I look forward to meeting, listening and responding to as many of you as I can and to giving my all on your behalf so you and your families can continue giving their all on behalf of this country.
www.raf-ff.org.uk
Envoy Autumn 2015
5
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56