Before Liz Truss came into power, she promised that she would maintain the level of support for the veterans of her predecessor Boris Johnson.
She immediately sacked Johnny Mercer MP and merged his role back under the control of the Ministry of Defence and James Heappey now has a dual role, Armed Forces and Veterans Minister.
A petition has been created by Felicity Cornelius-Mercer (wife of Johnny Mercer MP) to get the post re-instated. This petition is not to re-instate Johnny Mercer, it is to re-instate the post.
We have been working closely with the Office for Veteran's Affairs since meeting Boris Johnson on the 8th of June and Johnny's input has been invaluable, having a minister in the cabinet whose sole responsibility is veterans is a no-brainer. There is no way that Mr Heappey, no matter how good he is or the team around him has the time to dedicate to the veterans.
In fact, since Mr Heappey took over, we have emailed him on a number of occasions with no response. This was never the case when Johnny Mercer was in post, we always received a response.
This is not about re-instating Johnny Mercer, it is about doing the right thing for Veterans, it is ensuring that they have a voice at the top table in government.
We support this petition and encourage you all to sign it, not just for the nuclear veterans, but for all veterans in the UK.
A new website has also been created which explains the situation and how to help.
Please visit the website and show your support by sharing the petition and website across Social Media and don't forget to tag Liz Truss in any post.
We cannot let this situation continue, it is time to stand together and ensure that the Minister of Veterans Affairs is reinstated as a stand-alone post.