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Ministry of Defence

Answer

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures he has taken to invite the participation of bereaved relatives in hearings of Boards of Inquiry into the deaths of service personnel who have lost their lives in non-combat situations; what provision he has made to give relatives (a) full disclosure of statements available to the Board, (b) the right to address the Board, (c) the right to cross-examine witnesses and (d) copies of the transcript of proceedings at a reasonable cost; whether he has provided for the costs of legal representation to the families to be met from the public purse; and whether it is his policy that the Board of Inquiry would sit in public. [214258] Mr. Caplin: The Services, as part of their system of support to bereaved relatives, seek to provide full information on the progress of inquiries. However, a Board of Inquiry is an internal inquiry held to investigate the facts of an incident in order to prevent recurrence. It is not a court of law and it does not fulfil the same function as a Coroner's inquest (or a Procurator Fiscal's inquiry in Scotland), which is to establish the cause of death. Boards of Inquiry do not sit in public; and members of the public, bereaved relatives and the press have no right to be present. It has been the policy of the MOD since December 1992 to make available to the next of kin, at no cost, copies of completed Board of Inquiry reports, subject only to the redaction of security sensitive information and third party data, and the avoidance of prejudice to any other investigation.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

214258; 431 c114W

Session

2004-05

Subjects

Disclosure of information Armed forces Death Inquiries Relatives

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk