To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many armed forces widows who receive a pension through the 1975 Armed Forces Scheme have voluntarily surrendered their pensions on remarriage or cohabitation since the introduction of the scheme.

The number of armed forces widows who receive a pension through the 1975 Armed Forces Scheme who have had their pension suspended on remarriage or cohabitation since 2001, the earliest date for which figures are available, is 987. The provision of information for the period from 1975-2001 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

It has long been the policy of successive Governments that changes or improvement to public sector pension schemes should not be applied retrospectively. This is because legacy pension issues cannot be looked at in isolation; addressing one issue would increase the pressure to address legacy issues in all public sector pension schemes, and this would have huge financial implications.