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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 16 March 1999
DEFENCE
Appointments
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those people he has appointed to public bodies since 1 November 1998, indicating the positions to which they have been appointed and if they receive remuneration. [76420]
Mr. Spellar: The names, positions of those appointed or reappointed to the MOD Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPB) by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence or officials on his behalf since 1 November 1998 are as follows:
- Royal Naval Museum
- Vice Admiral Sir Barry Wilson, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, nil remuneration
- Royal Navy Submarine Museum
- Rear Admiral Anthony Hoddinott, Member of the Board of Trustees, nil remuneration
- RAF Museum
- Marshall of the RAF, Sir Michael Beetham, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, nil remuneration
- Defence Scientific Advisory Council
- (Members of the Register are paid on a daily basis)
- Mr. G. R. Belbin, Member of the Register
- Mr. J. R. Holloway, Member of the Register
- Mr. D. G. Money, Member of the Register
- Mr. D. M. Clunie, Member of the Register
- Mr. D. J. Q. Carter, Member of the Register.
In addition, in this period a reappointment was made by the Lord Chancellor to the Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors (a MOD NDPB): Mrs. R. Nugee, Member, remuneration is per meeting.
European Defence Policy
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what discussions he has held with the non-NATO members of the European Union on the future of European defence policy; and if he will make a statement; [76261]
- (2) what discussions his Department has had with the countries associated with the Western European Union on the future of the WEU and the European Union. [76265]
Mr. George Robertson:
We have invited all our Partners and Allies, including all countries associated with the Western European Union and non-NATO members of the European Union, to join us in thinking afresh about how to strengthen both European defence capabilities and the European Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy. This initiative has been very positively received, and I look forward to continuing the discussions with my colleagues over the coming months.
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Mr. Keith Simpson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the names of external consultants indicating the fees agreed in each case and nature of studies undertaken since 2 May 1997. [74745]
Mr. Spellar
[holding answer 4 March 1999]: Full details of consultancy engagements since 1 May 1997 could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, I can confirm that, in financial year 1997-98, the total expenditure on external consultancy by the MOD was £148.1 million involving more than 3,000 separate consultancy appointments and, in the first half of this financial year, £62.8 million involving over 1,000 appointments. Details of this expenditure is placed in the Library of the House annually.
The work undertaken by external consultants since May 1997 has included specialist input to procurement programmes and support to a number of Department efficiency initiatives, including market testing, the introduction of Resource Accounting and Budgeting, the review of the Department's UK estate and the development and implementation of SMART procurement.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when his Department expects to complete management plans for its sites containing lowland heathland in accordance with section 5.1.6 of the costed habitat action plan for lowland heathland in the United Kingdom Biodiversity Steering Group report; [76495]
(3) what is the extent of lowland heathland owned by his Department; and what proportion of the United Kingdom total of lowland heathland this constitutes; [76493]
(4) what sums his Department has allocated to bring lowland heathland habitats on its land into favourable nature conservation condition since May 1997; [76498]
(5) how much of the target for the re-establishment of lowland heathland in the United Kingdom that was published in 1995 in the United Kingdom Biodiversity Steering Group report his Department has achieved on its land to date; and how much it is planning to achieve on its land by the year 2005; [76496]
(6) what assessment he has made of the nature conservation condition of heathlands owned by his Department; how many of these sites were considered to be in favourable condition; and how many were in an unfavourable condition at the last assessment. [76497]
Mr. Spellar:
The information requested is not held centrally and in order to provide a full response it will have to be collated from disparate sources around the country, making reference as necessary, to the statutory
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conservation bodies. I will write to the hon. Member once this process has been completed and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Wigley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it the policy of Her Majesty's Government to support the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on Human Rights to raise the age of recruitment to the armed forces to the age of 18 years. [74308]
Mr. Doug Henderson:
The UK has played, and will continue to play, a full and active part in negotiations on the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. We consider our current recruiting and deployment policies to be in line with the principles that are being sought internationally. We recruit only volunteers into the Armed Forces, and then only with the written consent of parents/guardians in the case of personnel aged under 18. The Services provide young people with a rewarding and challenging career, together with the opportunity to develop skills and civilian recognised qualifications in a wide range of trades and occupations.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the Memorandum of Understanding signed in November 1991 by the British and Indonesian Governments is still in force; when it was last revised; and what assessment he has made of the benefits the Memorandum of Understanding has resulted in for British Governments. [76114]
Mr. Spellar:
The MOU signed by the MOD with the Government of the Republic of Indonesia in 1991 made provision for UK MOD support to the sale to the Indonesia Navy of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Green Rover. All arrangements provided for under the terms of the MOU have now been completed and the MOU is, to all intents and purposes, no longer in force. I understand that the MOU has achieved its aim of ensuring the efficient conduct of business over this sale.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people under the age of 18 years were in active service during Operation Desert Storm. [75015]
Mr. Doug Henderson:
I will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Mrs. Ewing:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what date HMS Vengeance is expected to start contractors' sea trials; what was the original planned date; and if he will make a statement. [76234]
Mr. Spellar
[holding answer 15 March 1999]: HMS Vengeance is due to start Contractor's Sea Trials later in the year. The exact date is classified for reasons
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of physical security. The currently planned date is later than the original, due to the need to replace components found to be defective during system testing at the shipbuilding. The components have now been changed and the submarine's systems are performing well.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people are currently employed by the RAF Logistic Support Services and how many there were at its establishment; on what date it published its report for the year 1997-98; and what was the cost of production of the report. [76617]
Mr. Doug Henderson:
This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Logistics Support Services Agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to the hon. Member.
(2) how many sites owned by his Department hold more than 10 hectares of lowland heathland; how many of these sites are notified as sites of special scientific interest; and how many have management plans with specific targets for the maintenance and re-creation of lowland heathland agreed with the statutory nature conservation agencies; [76494]
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