Tri-Service

Fake Medal Claimants Could Go To Jail

Parliament is set to debate a bill today that could put those who lie about having won military medals in prison.

The Times reports that a British version of the US Stolen Valour Act, sponsored by MP Gareth Johnson, would give someone up to six months in jail for claiming falsely to have won a gallantry medal.

MPs are set to hear allegations about civilians lying about being in the military to exploit charities, as well as people who exaggerate or lie about their military achievements or suffering (such as those who were in fact discharged after their first week of training).

One witness to the bill, Hugh Milroy, has tried to draw attention to people not in the military lying about service to gain advantage in housing, counselling, other support, or to just get money.

An example of this are people known in the military as "Walter Mittys", such as Mark Izzard, a lorry driver who lied to his family for 15 years about being in the SAS. Mr Milroy, formerly of the RAF, said:

"[It] is hardly surprising that people with low self-esteem... decide to embellish or even invent acts of bravery. This can similarly be said when it comes to the tendency to embellish trauma."

It comes after a number of petitions in recent years (see here and here) to make it illegal to impersonate a member of the Armed Forces - which ultimately failed to gain the 100,000 signatures needed to be considered for debate in Parliament.

A Facebook group who investigate those they believe to have faked military service told Forces TV:

"The Walter Mitty hunters club HQ welcome this move to create a stolen valour act. There is far to [sic] many examples of charlatans gaining employment as well as financial support by military charities and the general public who hold the armed forces in high esteem. It is for this sole reason these people who steal the hard work and sacrifice of our service people should be brought to justice and the appropriate punishment delt out."

It also comes after the head of a military charity said last week that charities were exaggerating the prevalence of PTSD because they wanted to get more in the way of donations.

Forces TV interviewed Ed Parker, Chief Executive of Walking With The Wounded, and former soldier and Conservative MP Johnny Mercer, about the issue of the over-diagnosis PTSD actually hurting veterans.

Parker has said that other mental health conditions get put under the term 'PTSD' because it is more prominent and attracts more attention.

Mercer, who has called for a department for veterans' affairs in the UK, pointed out that there can't possibly be, scientifically, as many cases of PTSD as are claimed, and that a lack of evidence-based treatments and duplication of care within the charity sector are both inefficient and unhelpful to veterans.