The Defence Committee has heavily criticised the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT) for costing the taxpayer £60 million and not making a single conviction.
In its Ninth Special Report of Session 2016–17, Who guards the guardians? MoD support for former and serving personnel: Government Response to the Committee’s Sixth Report the Committee said that the IHAT’s actions have put the lives of soldiers on hold because of allegations made against them – in many cases without any credible supporting evidence. The report adds that the effects of this on the British military are “profound and enduring” and that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) must take responsibility for creating an environment in which the generation of cases, with little or no supporting evidence, was able to occur.
The Defence Committee has also said that the MoD’s package of support for service personnel is “fragmented, inaccessible and largely unknown”. It says the MoD must, as a priority, devise and publish a single, accessible framework which sets out the MoD’s responsibilities and the support that soldiers and veterans can expect to receive. That framework must be widely publicised and understood throughout the chai