Derek Twigg, the Defence Minister, and Bruce Crawford, Scottish Government Minister, published a plan to “recognise the sacrifice made by our armed forces, and the unique demands on those who serve, their families and veterans.”

The plan includes doubling the armed forces compensation scheme payments for military people most seriously injured on operations, from £285,000 to £570,000. The joint announcement comes on the day that the UK Government published the service personnel command paper, which outlines a package of measures to improve the lives of service personnel, their families and veterans.

“The men and women of the armed forces based in Scotland and across the UK are outstanding in every respect. They face unique demands in the course of their duty and we owe them, their families and our veterans a huge debt of gratitude for all that they do,” said Twigg.

“To deliver real improvements for our military personnel, we will work with the Scottish Government, which is responsible for providing many of the public services which are part of these measures, such as health, education, housing and transport. I know that the Scottish Government has already started work on this, and I welcome their support, commitment, and pride in our armed forces.”

The command paper sets out over 40 actions to ensure the armed forces and their families are not disadvantaged due to service, including:

The doubling of armed forces compensation scheme payments for the most seriously injured (less seriously injured personnel will receive an increase of up to 80 per cent);

Improved access to NHS dentists for service families;

Free A-level or degree-level education for service personnel with six years service;

Free bus travel for injured service personnel and veterans;

Assistance to service leavers in getting on the property ladder by extending their key worker status for 12 months after leaving the armed forces;

And making it easier for service families with frequent and short notice postings to get their children into local schools.

The Scottish Government’s paper, Meeting Our Commitment, develops the proposals within the Command Paper in relation to Scotland’s devolved responsibilities to improve the quality of life for Service personnel, their families and for veterans.

Bruce Crawford said: “The brave men and women who put their lives on the line for their country deserve our gratitude and our recognition. But they and their families also deserve our help in overcoming barriers to access and use key services, and improving their quality of life.

“The commitment paper the Scottish Government are publishing contains a range of measures we are delivering in devolved areas such as health, housing and transport services, as a key part of our ongoing efforts to improve the day to day lives of our service personnel, past and present, and their families in Scotland.

“This is an objective shared with the UK Government and other devolved administrations, and I am delighted to support the package of measures outlined in the MoD’s Service Command Paper.

“We are committed to working in partnership with Scotland's veterans’ organisations and others to deliver the very best support possible. I am very encouraged that the veterans’ community has welcomed our partnership approach - and the doubling of the Scottish Government's Scottish Veterans Fund from £40,000 to £80,000 in each of the next three years.”

Sir Jock Stirrup, chief of the defence staff, said: “Our servicemen and women achieve great things on a daily basis in testing conditions all over the world. They, and their families, also face unique demands that make their achievements all the more remarkable. As a nation, we have a duty to make sure that our Armed Forces are treated fairly whether they are home or abroad, and that is why this service personnel command paper is so important.

“My fellow chiefs and I welcome this paper. It will ensure our armed forces and their dependents are not disadvantaged by their service life, and in some cases enjoy special treatment befitting of their daily sacrifice on behalf of us all.”

The service personnel command paper was commissioned by the Prime Minister in November 2007. Bob Ainsworth, the Armed Forces Minister, led a team of service personnel and MoD civil servants in completing the report. The service personnel command paper team consulted widely with current and former service personnel, their families, service charities, service families federations, other government departments and the devolved administrations.

A copy of Scotland's Veterans and Forces' Communities: Meeting our Commitment is available at
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/topics/people/social-inclusion/veterans