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Equipment Approvals Committee
Sir George Young: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the equipment approvals committee will hold its next meeting. [9169]
Mr. Spellar: This information continues to be withheld under exemption 7 of the code of practice on access to Government information.
Submarines
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the terms of reference of the defence review include consideration of additional conventional roles for Vanguard class nuclear-powered submarines. [9407]
Dr. Reid: The strategic defence review will examine all aspects of our deterrence requirements to ensure that they fully reflect changing strategic circumstances. However, the Government have no plans to use our strategic deterrent platform in a conventional role.
Volunteers
Mr. Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many volunteers aged under 18 years participated in the Gulf war. [9810]
Dr. Reid: Fully validated information on the number of British troops who served during the Gulf war, broken down into categories such as reservists and Territorial Army volunteers aged under 18 years, is not currently available. However, work is continuing to improve the quality of these data so that my Department can, in future, provide definitive answers to questions of this type.
RAF Laabruch and Bruggen
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what were the running costs for (a) RAF Laabruch and (b) RAF Bruggen (i) in total and (ii) excluding salaries in the last year for which figures are available. [10277]
Dr. Reid: The estimated running costs for RAF Laabruch and RAF Bruggen for the financial year 1996-97 are £78.4 million and £90.3 million respectively in total and £20.8 million and £20.4 million respectively excluding salaries.
National Service Medal
Mr. Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will introduce a medal for all those who completed national service. [10358]
Mr. Spellar: I refer the hon. member to the reply I gave on 5 June to my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North (Ms Walley), Official Report, column 222.
Starstreak Missile System
Mr. Maginnis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will expedite the acquisition of the laser-guided Starstreak missile system as an integral element in the Apache helicopter programme; and if he will resist US attempts to delay its acquisition until the infra-red Stinger missile system is modified and tested in an air-to-air role. [9012]
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Mr. Spellar:
The MOD is currently engaged with the US in a co-operative assessment of the Starstreak missile system in the air-to-air role. Following completion of these trials next year, the Department will assess carefully all the options for meeting the attack helicopter air-to-air requirement and decide the way forward for the UK.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to consider the establishment of a single armed forces medical service. [9416]
Dr. Reid:
Provision of medical support to the armed forces will form part of the strategic defence review. There are no current plans to establish a single armed forces medical service, but any changes that arise from the review will be announced when the review is complete.
Ms Kelly:
To ask the Secretary for Defence what estimate he has made of the number of jobs in the United Kingdom (a) directly and (b) indirectly dependent on the European fighter aircraft project, broken down by (i) parliamentary constituency and (ii) region. [9686]
Mr. Spellar:
Statistics for defence industry-related employment are collated on a regional basis and figures for parliamentary constituencies are not readily available. Current estimates indicate that there are about 6,000 high technology jobs in the UK directly dependent on the Eurofighter programme, primarily in the north-west and south-west of England, but involving approximately 100 companies in many parts of the UK. At peak production, this figure is estimated to rise to 14,000. Figures for the number of jobs indirectly dependent on the programme are currently unavailable.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what dates, and with respect to which countries, his predecessors or their representatives have signed agreements or memorandums of understanding with foreign Governments since 1984 relating to sales of defence and defence-related equipment in which repayment was to be made in supplies of oil or gas. [10075]
Mr. Spellar:
I am withholding this information in accordance with exemptions 1 and 13 of the code of practice on access to Government information.
Mrs. May:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is on the timely payment of debt; and what its record has been on debt payment in the current financial year. [9322]
Mr. Spellar
[holding answer 18 July 1997]: This is largely a matter for the chief executive of the Defence Bills Agency. I have asked the chief executive to write to the hon. Member. The other executive agencies that have responsibilities for payment of bills are also required to comply with departmental policy to pay bills promptly within agreed contract terms, or 30 days from receipt of the goods or service or a valid invoice, whichever is the
24 Jul 1997 : Column: 723
later, where no such terms exists. Information on payment performance for these agencies for the current financial year could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Letter from Mr. I. S. Elrick to Mrs. Theresa May, dated 24 July 1997:
Sir Richard Body:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence to what extent organisation of join armaments co-operation projects are included in the defence review; and if he will make a statement. [10207]
Mr. Spellar
[holding answer 22 July 1997]: The organisation of joint armaments co-operation, more usually known as the Organisme Conjointe de Cooperation en matiere d'armament--(OCCAR)--is in its formative stages. At present, no collaborative projects involving UK participation are managed by the OCCAR.
The prospective projects involving the UK currently identified for inclusion in the OCCAR framework--the counter battery radar programmes, COBRA; multi-role armoured vehicle, MRAV and the tri-national military satellite communications programme, TRIMILSAT--will be considered according to their individual circumstances and in relation to progress with the strategic defence review.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the current strength of the reserve forces, by type. [9418]
Mr. Spellar
[pursuant to his reply, 21 July 1997, c. 401]: I regret there was an error in the figures for the naval services. The correct figures are as follows:
I am replying to your question to the Secretary of State for Defence about Departmental debt payment as this matter falls, in the main, within my area of responsibility as Chief Executive of the Defence Bills Agency.
Departmental policy is to pay bills promptly within agreed contract terms, or 30 days from receipt of the goods or service or a valid invoice, whichever is later, where no such terms exist. Latest figures available for the current financial year show that during the period 1 April to 31 May 1997 the Defence Bills Agency paid 99.1% of bills within 11 days of their acceptance and 100% within 30 days. The Government will publish a league table of departmental payment performance for 1996-97 in the Autumn.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| Naval Services | |
| Regular reserves | 23,100 |
| Volunteer reserves and auxiliary forces | 3,500 |
| Army | |
| Regular reserves | 190,100 |
| Territorial Army | 57,600 |
| Royal Air Force | |
| Regular reserves | 45,300 |
| Volunteer reserves and auxiliary forces | 1,400 |
24 Jul 1997 : Column: 724
HEALTH
Medicines (Information)
Mr. Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to maximise public access to information on medicines. [9930]
Ms Jowell: We have asked the Medicines Control Agency to examine current policies on access to information about medicines. We will consider, in due course, what further action may be necessary to maximise such access whilst safeguarding legitimate confidential interests. We shall do so, taking account of the forthcoming White Paper on freedom of information and in the context of European Community licensing and control procedures.
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