UK minister urges LGBT veterans to meet compensation deadline

Britain's defence minister on Thursday urged LGBT military veterans sacked by the army over their sexual orientation to apply for financial compensation by a deadline in three months' time.

Defence Secretary Wes Streeting, who is openly gay, said he hoped "all eligible veterans come forward before the application deadline closes in 100 days" on December 12.

Between 1967 and 2000, lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people were barred from military service in Britain and "the ban caused lasting harm to many brave personnel," Streeting said.

The government announced in 2024 that it would allocate £75 million (then $96 million) to former armed forces members or employees dismissed or discharged over their sexual orientation, who were promised £50,000 each.

Others are eligible for payments of £20,000 if they were targeted in other harmful ways such as investigations, harassment or disciplinary action.

According to the government website, so far 1,892 payments have been made. These are only available to living veterans, not their descendants.

Veterans and their descendants can also apply for non-financial forms of compensation including an official letter of apology or a restoration ceremony, 40 of which have been held so far.

In 2023, then-prime minister Rishi Sunak apologised on behalf of the government to veterans for the "most horrific sexual abuse and violence, homophobic bullying and harassment".

Pointing to entrenched attitudes in the military, Streeting has said that in the first weeks since becoming defence secretary in July, he experienced "more online homophobia... than I have in my entire life".

"People cannot cope with the idea that a gay person might lead the armed forces," he told the Iain Dale All Talk podcast last month.

King Charles III last year laid a wreath at the UK's first memorial honouring the contribution by LGBTQ personnel who served in the military.