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Soviet Navy
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when trawlers were last used by his Department to track and monitor the former Soviet Navy.[18530]
Dr. Reid: The use by the Ministry of Defence of a very limited number of fishing trawlers for specific intelligence gathering operations against the former Soviet Navy ceased in 1973.
Territorial Army
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) men and (b) women are serving in the Territorial Army. [18168]
Dr Reid:
As at 1 October 1997 (a) 45,867 men and (b) 8,386 women were serving in the TA. The figures exclude 1,394 male and 11 female Non-Regular Permanent Staff (NRPS).
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 175
Ms Walley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Territorial Army officers there were in each of the last five years; what is the projected number for 1998; and if he will make a statement. [18364]
Dr. Reid:
The number, or strength, of Territorial Army (TA) officers, as at 1 April in each of the last five years was as follows:
The officer establishment of TA officers planned for 1 April 1998 is 6,825, but the actual strength on that date will depend largely on recruitment and retention factors.
The Department is currently reviewing the future size and shape of the Regular and Reserve Forces as part of the on-going Strategic Defence Review.
Mr. Cox:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many women are serving in each of the United Kingdom armed forces. [18578]
Dr. Reid:
I refer my hon. Friend to the monthly "Tri-Service Personnel Statistics", the most recent edition of which was published on 27 November 1997, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.
Mr. Gordon Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to ensure that fast jets are serviced according to the highest standards [18531]
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 176
Dr. Reid:
The RAF continually reviews its quality control and contracting processes to ensure that all of its aircraft are serviced in ways which meet the exacting quality standards which are required.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian employees there are within the (a) defence agencies and (b) defence executive agencies; and what is the projected number of civilian employees over the next three years. [18528]
Mr. Spellar:
All defence agencies are Next Steps agencies and no distinction is now made between defence agencies and what were one defence executive agencies. At 1 October 1997 some 61,400 permanent and 1,400 casual full-time equivalent civilian personnel worked in defence agencies. This represented 58 per cent. of permanent and 52 per cent. of casual Ministry of Defence civilian personnel at that date. While it is anticipated that there will be a small reduction of about 5 per cent. in the overall number of civilian personnel employed by the Ministry over the next three years (including Defence agencies), no separate estimates are available for defence agencies.
Mr. Donaldson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the current (a) full-time and (b) part-time establishment of the Royal Irish Regiment broken down by battalion; and by how much each battalion is under establishment. [18488]
Dr. Reid:
The establishment of the 1st Battalion The Royal Irish Regiment is 611, comprising General Service soldiers only. At 31 October it was 136 under establishment.
The information requested with regard to the six Home Service Battalions is set out in the table.
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 175
1993: 7,272
1994: 6,903
1995: 6,459
1996: 6,173
1997: 6,131.
| R Irish (HS FT) | R Irish (HS PT) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battalion | Establishment | Strength | Under-manning | Establishment | Strength | Under-manning |
| 3 R Irish | 676 | 555 | 121 | 563 | 472 | 91 |
| 4 R Irish | 631 | 516 | 115 | 510 | 427 | 83 |
| 5 R Irish | 419 | 367 | 52 | 326 | 221 | 105 |
| 7 R Irish | 469 | 414 | 55 | 402 | 329 | 73 |
| 8 R Irish | 407 | 365 | 42 | 320 | 291 | 29 |
| 9 R Irish | 466 | 413 | 53 | 315 | 239 | 76 |
| Total | 3,068 | 2,630 | 438 | 2,436 | 1,979 | 457 |
Figures as at 31 October 1997.
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 175
Royal Yacht
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for Her Majesty's Yacht Britannia. [18394]
Mr. George Robertson: I refer the hon. Member to the oral answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Greenock and Inverclyde (Mr. Godman) yesterday, Official Report, column 6.
Low Pay
Mr. Chidgey:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list, by regions defined by the
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 176
boundaries of the regional government offices, the lowest hourly rate paid by his Department to (a) full-time employees, (b) part-time employees, (c) persons employed under personal contract and (d) persons employed by firms undertaking contracted-out services for central government offices, defining the job title in each case. [18117]
Mr. Spellar:
The information requested in respect of civilian staff is given in the following table. Most staff employed by MOD are paid either London or national rates of pay. The table therefore gives two figures for each of (a), (b) and (c). We do not hold information about the pay of staff employed by companies undertaking contracts for the department.
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 177
| London (£) | National (£) | |
|---|---|---|
| (a) Full time(25) | 4.03 | 3.36 |
| (b) Part time(26) | 4.59 | 3.82 |
| (c) Personal contract | (27)-- | (27)-- |
(25) The figures quoted relate to administrative assistants. In London, these are paid a minimum of £8,593 a year (including £736 recruitment and retention allowance) working 41 hours gross; and £7,344 in the national area working 42 hours a week gross.
(26) Annual pay rates used for calculating part-time pay are the same as for full-time staff, but hourly rates are then calculated on net 36 (London) and 37 (national) hours a week as part-timers have no paid lunch break.
(27) "Personal contract" is taken here to mean staff on standard fixed term appointments. The minimum pay rates for such staff are the same as for full-time or part-time staff.
In the case of the Armed Forces, pay is based on recommendations made by the independent Armed Forces Pay Review Body (AFPRB) and published annually. The 1997 Report (Cmnd 3537) is available in the Library of the House. There is no regional variation in the basic pay of the Armed Forces, whose pay is based on daily, not hourly rates.
General Pinochet
Mr. Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what meetings representatives of his Department have had with General Pinochet concerning sales of defence equipment to Chile in the last two years; and if he will make a statement. [17837]
Mr. Spellar [holding answer 26 November 1997]: Since 1 May 1997, no representatives of my Department have had meetings with General Pinochet concerning the sale of defence equipment to Chile. I am advised, however, that in December 1996 the then Secretary of State for Defence met General Pinochet during his official visit to Chile.
HEALTH
Public Appointments
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many public appointments he has made since 1 May; and how many and what percentage of these (a) receive remuneration and (b) are of (i) Afro-Caribbean and (ii) Asian origin. [16775]
Mr. Milburn: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has made 435 public appointments since 1 May 1997. Of these, 85 per cent. are remunerated. The information about ethnic origin cannot be provided since to do so would risk identifying individuals without their consent. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has provided information for all departments in an aggregated form in his reply to my hon. Friend on 28 November 1997, Official Report, column 669.
Kidderminster Hospital
Mr. Gill:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the catchment area is of Kidderminster hospital; and how many people are within it. [17181]
2 Dec 1997 : Column: 178
Mr. Milburn:
The catchment area of Kidderminster hospital and how many people are within it as reported by the hospital are as follows:
| Population served (approximately) | |
|---|---|
| Worcestershire | 106,000 |
| Shropshire | 12,000 |
| Other: South Staffordshire, Dudley, Hereford | 6,000 |
| Total | 123,000 |
Note:
Figures do not sum due to rounding.
Source:
Kidderminster General Hospital.
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