'Social Housing Discrimination' update 23 Jun 2010: The Housing (Scotland) Bill has passed its first stage in the Scottish Parliament. Opening the debate for the Scottish Government, Alex Neil MSP said that the bill will, amongst other things, "remove the absurd anomaly under which our servicemen and women are unable to form a local connection in the areas in which they were based during their service in the armed forces to enable them to get on the housing list."  BAFF strongly supports this reform, which follows a similar change south of the border.

Below is an article about the BAFF member who led the successful campaign for removal of social housing discrimination against service leavers and their families.

In May 2008 a new website appeared under the banner of 'The Servicemen's Union', announcing that:

The servicemen's union has been set up for all serving and ex-service personnel. We believe that all servicemen and women have the right to join a union and that we should as soon as possible be affiliated to the TUC, like any other union.

The website provided a copy of "The Original Soldier's Charter", which appears to have been published by Hull University Union Labour Society in 1971:

In consultation with members of the Leeds Labour Party Young Socialists, this Labour Society and the Young Chartists nationally, the authors of this document. all of them young soldiers, have formed a "Soldiers'Trade Union Rights Movement"...

The Charter is a fascinating period piece, which helps to explain why the typical opponent of a representative staff association turned out to have served as an officer in the 1970s.

The Servicemen's Union has no connection with the British Armed Forces Federation.

The Servicemen's Union website appears to have disappeared after 2009. We have an electronic copy of the 1971 "Soldier's Charter" .

In an exchange in May 2008 about an armed forces federation for British personnel, defence minister Derek Twigg gave evidence to the House of Commons Defence Committee that:

"Recently the Australian Federation has disbanded or got in trouble; I am not quite sure which."