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Ministry of Defence Police (Colchester)

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the MOD police are based in Colchester. [6827]

Mr. Soames: There are currently 43 MOD police officers, of whom six are CID, and two civilian members of staff based in Colchester.

Bosnia

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, column 241, if he will list the US navy ships which have been chartered by his Department to move United Kingdom equipment to Bosnia; what consideration he gave to the chartering of British merchant vessels; and if he will provide details of the financial arrangements concerning this charter. [6989]

Mr. Soames: The names of the two US navy ships chartered to move United Kingdom equipment to Bosnia are USNS Cape Rise and USNS Cape Race. The Ministry of Defence charters shipping that best meets its sealift requirements in the most cost-effective manner possible. As they are non-trading vessels and therefore not committed to existing commercial charters, the US naval ships provide guaranteed availability with the ability to meet the initial rapid deployment time scales required of us by NATO. The US navy ships have been chartered under the auspices of a UK-US bilateral arrangement on a reimbursement basis. It is intended to charter civilian shipping on the international market for the balance of the sea deployment requirement for which British ship owners will have an opportunity to offer their vessels. The defence freight market representative at the Baltic exchange, acting on behalf of the Ministry of Defence, has now approached the market.

RAF Bases (Planned Closures)

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 11 December, Official

19 Dec 1995 : Column: 1112

Report, column 485, if he will list the closure dates of (a) RAF Carlisle, (b) RAF Quedgeley and (c) RAF North Luffenham. [6993]

Mr. Soames: The planned closure dates for RAF Carlisle and RAF Quedgeley are 31 March 1997 and 31 March 1996 respectively. RAF North Luffenham is expected to close towards the end of 1997.

Ministry of Defence Police (Redundancies)

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many redundancies there have been in the MOD police in each of the last five years. [6826]

Mr. Soames: There have been no redundancies in the MOD police during the past five years.

Special Investigations Branch (Colchester)

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of his Department's special investigations branch are based in Colchester. [6828]

Mr. Soames: Five members of the special investigations branch of the Royal Military police are based in Colchester.

Departmental Targets

Mr. David Nicholson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how his Department performed against performance measurements in the period 1 April 1994 to 31 March 1995; and if he will make a statement. [7542]

Mr. Soames: My Department has today published a performance report covering the period 1 April 1994 to 31 March 1995, and I have placed a copy in the Library of the House.

Army Attack Helicopter

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of the manufacture of the Army's attack helicopter will be made in Britain. [6991]

Mr. Arbuthnot: As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced on 13 July 1995, Official Report, columns 1091-92, we have received guarantees that at least 50 per cent. of the Army's attack helicopter procurement by cash value will be manufactured in the United Kingdom. The details of how this will be achieved are being negotiated currently, and will be reflected in the contract, which we expect to place with Westland helicopters in the new year.

Service Housing

Dr. David Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total cost to date of consultancy payments made to firms in relation to work carried out to develop his Department's plans for the proposed sell-off of its housing stock. [6888]

19 Dec 1995 : Column: 1113

Mr. Arbuthnot: The total cost to date of consultancy payments made to firms in relation to new arrangements for the married quarters estate, including work carried out on the previous proposal for a housing trust and on the establishment of the Defence Housing Executive, amounts to some £5.9 million, exclusive of VAT, on the basis of invoices received by early December. Such firms include financial legal and property advisers. Of this total, approximately £1.6 million has been incurred, subsequent to the abandonment of the housing trust proposal, on the development of the proposal to transfer the married quarters estate to the private sector announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 30 November 1995, Official Report, columns 810-11.

Mr. Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the approximate value of (a) land that has planning consent and (b) land that does not have planning consent that is planned to be sold in addition to the 73,000 dwellings already announced in the plans to privatise his Department's service dwellings. [5944]

Mr. Arbuthnot [holding answer 18 December 1995]: As set out in the preliminary information memorandum for the sale of the married quarters estate, a copy of which is in the Library of the House, the current expectation is that the number of dwellings to be sold will be approximately 60,000. The extent of the land to be included in the sale varies from, in a few cases, little more than that on which the quarters stand to, at the other extreme, spacious grounds with low density housing. Our assessment of the value of the married quarters estate under the terms of the proposed sale is commercially confidential.

Departmental Payments

Mrs. Roche: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) orders and (b) firms are represented by the percentage of invoices not paid by his Department within 30 days in 1994-95. [6489]

Mr. Arbuthnot: Most of my Department's bills are paid by the Defence Accounts Agency. The Defence Evaluation and Research Agency pays its own. I have asked the chief executives to write to the hon. Member.

Letter from John Chisholm to Mrs. Barbara Roche, dated 19 December 1995:

You asked the Secretary of State for Defence about the number of orders and firms whose invoices are not paid by his Department within 30 days and what amount is owed to businesses by his Department whose invoices are not paid within 30 days. I am replying to both questions on behalf of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency, formerly the Defence Research Agency.

I explained in my letter to you of 1 November that virtually all our validated invoices are paid within 9 days of reaching our bill paying section. As the number of bills not paid within this period is so small I am afraid that we do not keep statistics on them.
I am sorry I cannot be more helpful on this occasion.

19 Dec 1995 : Column: 1114

Letter from P. J. Trevelyan to Mrs. Barbara Roche, dated 19 December 1995:

You asked the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) orders and (b) firms are represented by the percentage of invoices not paid by his Department within 30 days in 1994-95. As Chief Executive of the Defence Accounts Agency I have been asked to reply.

The payment performance statistics which are readily available are held in volume of invoices only so the information requested could only be provided as disproportionate cost.
I am sorry I cannot be more helpful.

Mrs. Roche: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the amount owed to those businesses whose invoices were not paid within 30 days or within agreed contractual arrangements for 1994-95. [6513]

Mr. Arbuthnot: Most of my Department's bills are paid by the Defence Accounts Agency. The Defence Evaluation and Research Agency pays its own. I have asked the chief executives to write to the hon. Member.

Letter from John Chisholm to Mrs. Barbara Roche, dated 19 December 1995:

You asked the Secretary of State for Defence about the number of orders and firms whose invoices are not paid by his Department within 30 days and what amount is owed to businesses by his Department whose invoices are not paid within 30 days. I am replying to both questions on behalf of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency, formerly the Defence Research Agency.
I explained in my letter to you of 1 November that virtually all our validated invoices are paid within 9 days of reaching our bill paying section. As the number of bills not paid within this period is so small I am afraid that we do not keep statistics on them.
I am sorry I cannot be more helpful on this occasion.

Letter from P. J. Trevelyan to Mrs. Barbara Roche, dated 19 December 1995:

You asked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the amount owed to those businesses whose invoices were not paid within 30 days or within agreed contractual arrangements for 1994/95. As Chief Executive of the Defence Accounts Agency I have been asked to reply.
We monitor our prompt payment performance closely. Of the almost 3 million bills received by the Liverpool payment office in 1994/95, 329 were not paid within 30 days. The payment performance statistics which are readily available are held in volume of bills only, therefore the amount of money owed in respect of this very small percentage of invoices could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
I am sorry I cannot be more helpful.

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