A Select Committee has been appointed by the House of Commons to consider the Armed Forces Bill 2026, which would be the latest renewal for five years of the Armed Forces Act 2006. The Select Committee has invited submissions.

Please note that the MOD doesn't encourage serving personnel to submit evidence to Parliamentary inquiries except where special permission has been given for specific inquiries. BAFF members should contact us urgently if they wish a particular point to be made without being personally identified.

The Ministry of Defence has announced that for the first time, free, independent legal advice will be available to victim-survivors of rape and sexual offences (allegedly) committed by Service personnel or a civilian subject to Service Discipline that are being investigated by the Service Justice System.

The Independent Legal Advocacy (ILA) support programme pilot will, from Spring 2026, provide impartial legal support to any such victim-survivors aged 18 or over, irrespective of whether they themselves are Service personnel or civilians.

We are working on proposals to change the BAFF Constitution. This would mean discontinuing the formal company registration to save costs. This involves converting to an unincorporated trust, mirroring the current constitution as much as possible.