Member

The right hon. Members for Rayleigh and Wickford and for South West Wiltshire asked whether it is right to include veteran officers on boards to increase the depth and wealth of experience on courts martial. Since 2021, we have increased the potential pool of board members and OR-7s—the equivalent of Royal Marine colour sergeants, staff sergeants, chief petty officers and flight sergeants—are now able to sit on boards. We have mixed service boards to ensure that there are women and men on every board. Both reserves and regulars may sit on boards. I remind Members that we have 331 one stars in the military, so there is no shortage of senior ranks to sit on those boards, although convincing them to do so may be the problem.