Tri-Service

MoD: "No Plans" To Cut Operational Allowance

The Ministry of Defence says there are "no plans" to change the eligibility rules for the Operational Allowance (OA).

OA is paid to personnel serving in operational areas.

However, social media group Fill Your Boots claims to have acquired evidence that the Operations Recognitions Board (ORB) has requested it not be paid to soldiers on peacekeeping missions in countries including Chad, Nigeria and South Sudan, in a bid to save £700,000.

The tax-free OA made headlines in 2010 when new Prime Minister David Cameron doubled it from £14.51 per day to £29.02 per day.

And according to Fill Your Boots, Mr Cameron blocked its removal after this was suggested by the ORB, during the 2015 defence review.

British troops arrived in South Sudan for a UN peacekeeping mission last month, with the MoD saying there will be further deployments throughout the rest of 2016. An MoD spokesperson said:

"The allowance was originally introduced for intense combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. We review the qualifying locations every six months as standard but ministers have no plans to change the eligibility rules."

It added that the Operations Recognition Board, chaired by a senior military officer, reviews the risk and rigours of overseas operational locations every six months to ensure that the receipt of Operational Allowance remains relevant and appropriate.

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