The Labour Party's 2024 General Election manifesto included a commitment to "strengthen support for our Armed Forces communities by putting the Armed Forces Covenant fully into law", and in June 2025 following a Defence Committee report on the Armed Forces Covenant, the Government committed to extending the Covenant’s Legal Duty to all UK Government departments and the devolved administrations.
Specifically, the Armed Forces Bill now before Parliament would extend the Covenant Legal Duty to cover all UK Government Departments, all Devolved Governments (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland), and the following wide policy areas:
- Housing
- Education
- Healthcare
- Social care
- Childcare
- Employment and service in the armed forces
- Personal taxation
- Welfare benefits
- Criminal justice
- Immigration
- Citizenship
- Pensions
- Service-related compensation
- Transport