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Veterans: Pensions

Volume 486: debated on Monday 12 January 2009

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many veterans are members of (a) Armed Forces Pension Scheme 75 and (b) Armed Forces Pension Scheme 05. (244827)

The number of veterans belonging to the Armed Forces Pension Schemes (AFPS) 1975 and 2005 as at 31 March 2008 is shown in the following table.

Pension scheme

Pensioners1

Deferred2

AFPS 1975

363,087

AFPS 2005

674

Gurkhas and Minor Schemes

26,488

Total

390,249

324,002

1 Pensioners are those who have left the service, their spouses and dependants, who are in receipt of a pension.

2 Deferred are preserved pensions that are payable when an individual reaches the age of 60 (AFPS 1975) or 65 (AFPS 2005). A separate breakdown of personnel who are deferred members of AFPS 1975, AFPS 2005 and the Gurkhas and Minor Schemes cannot currently be provided.