MoD has this week advised Sir Jeremy Heywood KCB, CVO, Secretary of the Cabinet and Head of the Civil Service, that it should remain an offence to refuse to obey a direct order to make a false declaration regarding airworthiness and financial probity. To issue such an order is not an offence.
To obey such an order is to commit fraud and constitutes misconduct in public office.
Sir Jeremy accepted this advice and personally signed the letter containing his ruling on 28th October.
Important stuff, but I'm puzzled as to what status such a ruling could have.
As you say tucumseh, obeying an order to make a false declaration is likely to result in a criminal offence, including an offence under the Armed Forces Act. Such an order would therefore be an illegal order.
I am well aware that it's not as simple as that in practice, but the law seems straightforward enough on that point, and I don't see what difference a letter from Sir Jeremy could make.
Incidentally, for the present the offence of corporate manslaughter is still available in extreme cases, subject to all the exclusions which apply specifically to the armed forces. However, some campaigners propose that the offence should be removed altogether from the armed forces, including in the UK and in peacetime.