To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people discharged before January 2000 from (a) the Army, (b) the Royal Navy and (c) the RAF because of their sexual orientation are awaiting compensation payments; how many people have received compensation payments in each of the last six years; what the (i) average, (ii) minimum and (iii) highest payments made in these cases has been; how many former servicemen and women have rejected payments offered; and if he will make a statement. (85917)

There are 62 claims against the Ministry of Defence from ex-service personnel who allege that they were dismissed from the armed forces as a result of their sexual orientation that remain to be settled. Of these 27 are ex-Army, 19 ex-RAF and 16 ex-Royal Navy personnel. Initial offers of compensation have been made in 29 of these cases, but rejected; negotiations are ongoing.

The following table shows that 24 claims were settled over the last six years. The highest settlement figure was £115,405 and the lowest settlement figure was £10,000. The average settlement award of £35,435.