| Previous Section | Home Page |
Phantom Aircraft Squadrons
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any decision has been made on what to do with the Phantom aircraft of Nos. 19 and 92 squadrons, following the disbanding of those squadrons.
Column 445
Mr. Archie Hamilton : No decision has yet been taken.Chemical Weapons
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his Department's latest assessment of the size of the Soviet Union's stockpile of chemical weapons, in terms of quantity of chemical agents.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : We continue to assess that the Soviet stockpile of chemical warfare agents is several times greater than the figure of 50,000 tonnes declared by the Soviets themselves in 1987.
Nuclear Weapons
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which beryllium compounds are used in the United Kingdom's nuclear weapons programme.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Beryllium in metallic form is used at the atomic weapons establishment sites at Aldermaston, Cardiff and Burghfield.
RAF Molesworth
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future use of RAF Molesworth.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridgeshire, South-West (Sir A. Grant) on 11 January 1990, at column 691.
NATO
Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the use of undercover organisations by NATO.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : It is not the Government's practice to comment on such questions.
Armoured Vehicles
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any additional orders have been placed with Vickers plc for the supply of spare parts for Challenger tanks as a result of the deployment of forces to the Gulf.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any additional orders have been placed with GKN plc for the supply of spare parts for Warrior armoured vehicles as a result of the deployment of forces to the Gulf.
Mr. Alan Clark : Orders already in the pipeline with GKN for the support of Warrior armoured vehicles have been brought forward as a result of the deployment of forces to the Gulf.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the operational availability of armoured vehicles deployed with the 7 Armoured Brigade has been increased or reduced since their deployment to the Gulf.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The armoured vehicles deployed with the 7 Armoured Brigade underwent a programme of
Column 446
modification to improve their performance in harsh desert conditions. We are satisfied with the resultant operational availability.Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he plans to improve the operational availability of armoured vehicles deployed with the 4 Armoured Brigade once they have been moved to the Gulf.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The armoured vehicles that will deploy with 4 Brigade will be modified on arrival in the Gulf to ensure that operational availability is maintained in the harsh desert environment.
British Army of the Rhine
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the operational availability of those forces deployed with the British Army of the Rhine which will not be deployed to the Gulf has declined or increased since 16 September.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The decision to increase our ground forces in the Gulf to divisional strength will have some adverse effect upon the availability of the remaining forces in Germany. Our NATO allies are aware of the planned deployments.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the present number of (a) infantry battalions, (b) armoured regiments and (c) artillery regiments deployed with the British Army of the Rhine.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The information requested is as follows :
|Number
--------------------------------------
(a) Infantry Battalions |10
(b) Armoured Regiments |11
(c) Artillery Regiments |9
These figures exclude units that have already deployed to the Gulf or are earmarked to do so.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the supply of spare parts for Challenger tanks and Warrior vehicles currently deployed with the British Army of the Rhine has altered as a result of the deployment of the 7 Armoured Brigade to the Gulf.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The units deployed to the Gulf from BAOR took their vehicles and a full scale of spares with them. Additional spares have also been supplied as necessary, with some consequential effects on the spares position in BAOR.
The Gulf
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what approximate number of reservists will be required for the deployment of further troops in the Gulf announced on 22 November.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The number of reservists required as a consequence of deployments to the Gulf will depend on the results of detailed planning, which has yet to be completed.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the nature of the skills that will be required from reservists as a result of the deployment of further troops in the Gulf announced on 22 November.
Column 447
Mr. Archie Hamilton : As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence made clear when making his announcement on 22 November, we will particularly need members of the reserve with medical experience or training.Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he anticipates sending further forces to the Gulf in addition to the deployment announced on 22 November.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The military situation in the Gulf is kept under constant review. The deployment of further British forces in due course is not ruled out.
Attack Helicopter
Mr. Mans : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has yet reached a decision on the choice of new attack helicopter for the Army.
Mr. Alan Clark : As previously announced, we have participated along with three other European nations in joint studies of the feasibility of developing a light attack helicopter (LAH) based on the Agusta A129 design.
Although these studies have demonstrated the feasibility of such a development, unfortunately, and despite the best efforts of all parties involved, it appears that development of a solution that would meet the requirements of all four nations would not be economic. Additionally, as a result of international developments since the studies were initiated, including the CFE agreement, the number of aircraft required by some nations has reduced below the level at which a collaborative A129-LAH would be economically viable, and the Governments concerned have decided not to proceed with a LAH development.
We are continuing to evaluate other options for meeting the British Army's requirement for a new attack helicopter, but it is likely to be some time before I am able to announce our conclusions.
HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION
Ibbs Report
Sir Geoffrey Howe : To ask the hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed, representing the House of Commons Commission, what is the response of the Commission to the report by Sir Robin Ibbs on House of Commons services ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Beith : On 21 May Sir Robin Ibbs was invited by the House of Commons Commission to undertake a review of the management and decision- taking structures of the House. The report of the team led by Sir Robin was presented to the Commission on 29 October and was further considered by the Commission last week. It was published today in full as House of Commons paper 38.
The Commission is grateful to Sir Robin and his colleagues for reporting so promptly on the complex issues referred to them and for their constructive recommendations. The Commission welcomes the proposals in the report as providing a coherent framework for the evolution of the management, financial control and
Column 448
decision-making structures of the House and the establishment of a single budget for House of Commons services under the Commission's control.Many detailed issues remain to be resolved. The Commission expects, however, to take steps during the next few months towards implementing the proposals in the report, in co-operation with and subject to agreement with the other bodies involved.
Meanwhile, the Commission will welcome comments from Members, the staff of the House and others. These should be addressed in the first instance to the secretary of the Commission.
HOUSE OF COMMONS
House of Cards"
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Lord President of the Council what facilities in the Palace of Westminster were made available to the makers of the drama series "House of Cards".
Mr. MacGregor [holding answer 23 November 1990] : I understand representatives from the drama series "House of Cards" were admitted to the Palace in order to gain an impression of the interior with a view to constructing appropriate sets or obtaining locations elsewhere.
EMPLOYMENT
Action for Jobs
Mr. Terry Davis : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how much of the expenditure on (a) press advertising, (b) radio advertising, (c) outdoor advertising, (d) regional campaigns, (e) exhibition material, (f) research and (g) presentations for action for jobs in 1986-87 was spent through the Central Office of Information.
Mr. Jackson : All the expenditure on press advertising, radio advertising, outdoor advertising and research for action for jobs in 1986- 87 was spent through the Central Office of Information. Expenditure on action for jobs presentations and exhibition material in 1986-87 was not placed through the Central Office of Information. There was no expenditure on regional campaigns for action for jobs in 1986-87.
Careers Service
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has any plans to transfer the whole or any part of the careers service to local enterprise companies ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Jackson [holding answer 27 November 1990] : The arrangements for careers guidance are currently the subject of an internal review. The review team will be presenting its recommendations shortly. As for the situation for local enterprise companies, this is the responsibility of my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland.
Column 449
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has any plans to privatise the whole or parts of the careers service now provided by local education authorities ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Jackson [holding answer 27 November 1990] : As the hon. Member is aware, on 25 July this year, a
Column 450
feasibility study was announced to consider options for the future of the careers and occupational information centre (COIC), including options for transferring it to the private sector. The results of this study as well as that of the careers guidance review are due out soon.
|
| Home Page |