Military Covenant The Military Covenant is a term introduced into British public life to refer to the mutual obligations between the nation and its Armed Forces . According to the " Guardian " , " it is an informal understanding , rather than a legally - enforceable deal , but it is nevertheless treated with great seriousness within the services " . It was coined with the publication by the Ministry of Defence of the booklet ‘ Soldiering – The Military Covenant ’ in April 2000 , and has now entered political discourse as a way of measuring whether the government and society at large have kept to their obligations to support members of the armed forces . The Covenant is a term used mainly by the British Army , other British armed forces and the media in relation to the question of adequate safeguards , rewards and compensation for military personnel who risk their lives in obedience to military orders derived from the policy of the elected civilian government . It is argued that armed forces personnel should expect to be treated fairly by the Crown and expect the support of the nation , society and the government . The Ministry of Defence states " In putting the needs of the Nation , The Army and others before their own , they forgo some of the rights enjoyed by those outside the Armed Forces . So , at the very least , British soldiers should always expect the Nation and their commanders to treat them fairly , to value and respect them as individuals , and to sustain and reward them and their families . " Although the term " covenant " implies some form of legal guarantee or contract , there is in fact no basis in UK law , custom or history for such covenant . Members of the armed forces are recruited and maintained by successive quinquennial Armed Forces Acts as a specific , albeit continuing , derogation from the Bill of Rights 1689 , which otherwise prohibits the Crown from maintaining a standing army . The Armed Forces Acts guarantee no such covenant , neither do the Notice Papers served on recruits when attested on enlistment . And , on the other hand , the very existence of the armed forces is , for some members of society , controversial . There has been increased media coverage of the so - called military covenant as the government has been accused of failing to meet it ; this criticism came from not just the media , but also several previous Chiefs of the Defence Staff said the government needed to do more to help support injured troops and their families . Such coverage has rarely questioned the validity of the " covenant " , or reflected opposing views . The Covenant . The introduction to ‘ Soldiering – The Military Covenant ’ reads : History . While recognition of a special bond of mutual obligations between the state and its Armed Forces dates back more than 400 years , it was not until 2000 that the Army published ' Soldiering - the Military Covenant ' which set out the obligations on the soldier to make personal sacrifices in the service of the nation , and stated that the armed forces must be sustained by the nation . The code had been drafted over the course of three years by senior officers led by a Brigadier . The main author was Major - General Simon Roberts . The term ' Military Covenant ' was heavily promoted by General Sir Richard Dannatt , who was Chief of the General Staff from 2006 . The existence of government obligations to the armed forces was accepted by the Prime Minister Tony Blair during a keynote lecture on Defence given on 12 January 2007 when he stated that the covenant needed to be renewed , and that " it will mean increased expenditure on equipment , personnel and the conditions of our armed forces , not in the short run but for the long term . " Political debate . In September 2007 The Royal British Legion launched a campaign which accused the Government of failing to meet its commitments under the Covenant . The Legion highlighted the case of a 23 - year - old paratrooper , injured in battle , who was awarded £152 , 150 despite injuries requiring care for the rest of his life . It also criticised the practice of treating soldiers in wards alongside civilian patients . In his conference speech that October , Conservative Party leader David Cameron referred to the Covenant and said " Mr . Brown , I believe your government has broken it . " Responding to the Royal British Legion ' s campaign , the Secretary of State for Health Alan Johnson announced in November 2007 that armed forces veterans would get priority treatment on the National Health Service , and those injured would be treated immediately in hospital rather than go through waiting lists . Prescription charges would also be waived . A tight budget settlement for the Ministry of Defence in 2007 saw five former Chiefs of the Defence Staff launch personal criticism of Prime Minister Gordon Brown in a simultaneous House of Lords debate . In upholding the claim of six Gurkha soldiers for the right to settle in Britain at the end of their service , Mr Justice Blake ' s judgment in September 2008 recited the Military Covenant before observing that granting them residence in Britain " would , in my judgment , be a vindication and an enhancement of this covenant " . In opposition David Cameron asked Andrew Murrison MP to establish the Military Covenant Commission . Chaired by author Frederick Forsyth CBE and with experts including the Falklands veteran Simon Weston OBE its report ( www . militarycovenantcommission . com ) heavily influenced the current government ' s thinking . On 25 June 2010 , The Times newspaper reported that Prime Minister David Cameron announced plans to enshrine the Military Covenant in law . Such a development would allow British servicemen and servicewomen to sue the State for breaches of the Military Covenant .