Stuart Anderson MP is calling on residents across South Shropshire to celebrate Armed Forces Week, a national week of events that is taking place between Monday 22nd June 2026 and Saturday 27th June 2026.
The week includes flag-raising ceremonies and Reserves Day on Wednesday 24th June 2026, recognising the unique needs and special contribution of Regular and Reservist personnel and their families to the defence of the nation.
Stuart Anderson MP said:
“South Shropshire is proudly home to thousands of veterans who have made real sacrifices for our freedom. As someone who served in the Rifles from the age of 16, I know very well how much their service means, and how much it costs veterans and their families. Armed Forces Week is a great moment for us to recognise and celebrate their service and sacrifice. While I welcome the extension of the Armed Forces Covenant Duty to more public services, I am clear that it must mean real support for our veterans and their families, backed by clear guidance, proper funding, and accountability. For example, I am greatly concerned that the waiting period for war pensions has more than tripled under Labour’s watch. That is why I took the opportunity in the House of Commons to hold the Minister to account on this issue. This Armed Forces Week, let’s remember, thank, and commit to making South Shropshire and the whole of the UK the best possible place in which to be a veteran.”
On 22nd June 2026, Stuart Anderson MP intervened on the Report Stage of the Armed Forces Bill, which extends the scope of the Armed Forces Covenant, a promise that veterans and their families are treated fairly by public services. In October 2025, Stuart had urged the government to strengthen support available to veterans via the Covenant following a campaign launched by the Royal British Legion.
The Covenant was previously strengthened in November 2022, when the last government placed a legal duty on local authorities and providers of healthcare, education and housing to observe it. The new legislation extends the Covenant Legal Duty to all areas of government, including public services across 12 key areas. It means that childcare, education, employment, health and social care, housing, transport, and criminal justice services will all be legally required to consider the unique needs of the Armed Forces community.
In the General Election of July 2024, the Conservatives had also promised to deliver the UK’s first-ever "Veterans Bill" to enshrine veterans’ rights in law and widen the scope of the Covenant’s. Stuart has said that the extension is a vital step towards that goal. However, he has urged Ministers to go further on support for veterans, reserves, and housing defence. Drawing on his time with the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Stuart has said that Britain does not honour its veterans at the level it should. He has also said that Ministers should do much more to recognise the special contribution made by veterans and their families.
In a series of interventions in Parliament, Stuart has challenged Government Ministers on their commitment to supporting veterans and their families. In particular, he questioned a response he received from Minister Louise Sandher-Jones to a Written Parliamentary Question which stated that veterans face a six-month wait when applying for war pensions in 2024-25. Stuart said that it is now 18 months at a minimum and that he knows this because he is going through the process after a minor amputation of his foot. He added that the waiting period has more than tripled on the Minister’s watch. The Minister promised to write to him with “very full details” of the measures taken to address the issue.
At the 2021 census, 3,043 people in South Shropshire reported that they had previously served in the UK Armed Forces. This represents 3.7% of the population aged 16 and over. This compares with 2.6% of the population in the West Midlands and 2.9% in Great Britain. 3,748 - or 8.9% - households in South Shropshire have at least one veteran, compared to 6.5% in the West Midlands and 7.0% in Great Britain. As part of his campaign to make Shropshire the best place to be a veteran, Stuart launched a Veterans' Support Navigator on his website in April 2024, which he continues to maintain with helpful information.
