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Antonov 124-100

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what length of runway is required for the Antonov 124-100 when fully loaded. [103104]

Mr. Kilfoyle [holding answer 20 December 1999]: This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Defence Procurement Agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to my hon. Friend.

Letter from Sir Robert Walmsley to Mr. Lindsay Hoyle, dated 10 January 2000:

I am replying to your question to the Secretary of State for Defence in which you asked what length of runway is required for the Antonov AN 124-100 when fully loaded. This matter falls to me for answer within my area of responsibility as Chief of Defence Procurement and Chief Executive of the Defence Procurement Agency.

According to Antonov promotional literature, when fully loaded the An124-100 requires a runway length of 3,000 metres.

Territorial Army Land (Crosby)

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what representations he has received from the Territorial Auxiliary and Volunteer Reserve Association in Hightown regarding the purchase of access land; [103748]

(2) if he will make a statement on the land owned and managed by the Territorial, Auxiliary and Volunteer Reserve Association in Hightown (Crosby), Merseyside. [103747]

Mr. Spellar: The Territorial Auxiliary and Volunteer Reserve's (TAVRA) rifle range at Altcar is accessed via a private road that passes through land that was sold in July 1998 to two parties. It has not been possible to reach an agreement to renew the right of way to the rifle range with one of the landowners. My Department is therefore considering options to resolve this difficulty. In the meantime, the rifle range is being accessed through a secondary entrance as a temporary measure.

Joint Rapid Reaction Force

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the impact of the Joint Rapid Reaction Force Exercise in Oman, scheduled for October 2001, on (a) the timetable for a decision on the FTA programme and (b) the assessment of the merits of the A400M aircraft. [103110]

Mr. Kilfoyle [holding answer 20 December 1999]: We have always known that A400M would not be available in the short term and the Joint Rapid Reaction Force

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exercise in Oman in 2001 has not, therefore, been a factor in our assessment of the aircraft or of the FTA programme.

Gurkha Pensions

Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he has completed his examination of Gurkha pensions. [103638]

Mr. Spellar: The examination of Gurkha pensions and gratuities is now complete. Within the terms of the Tri-Partite Agreement (TPA) between India, Nepal and the UK Gurkha pensions will be increased to allow for a welfare related cash uplift to take account of Indian Government benefits in kind that will at least double the pension payments for all Gurkha pensioners. Increases will be introduced from 1 April 2000. Pension increases will continue to be paid immediately after 15 years service and, where appropriate, passed on to the widow and then

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a child up to the age of 25 years. Pensions will be reviewed in the normal way and will benefit from cost of living increases each year. The Nepalese Government have made representations throughout this examination and both the Nepalese and Indian Governments have been notified of the increases.

Sandhurst

Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what percentage of officers accepted for training at Sandhurst Military College in each of the last five years received their secondary education in (a) independent and public schools and (b) maintained schools, broken down by company. [103871]

Mr. Spellar: This information is not available in the form requested. An estimated breakdown of the secondary education of British Officer Cadets at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst for each of the past five financial years is as follows:

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	Welbeck College		State schools		Independent schools		Overseas schools
Financial year of entry	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage	Total
1994-95	27	4.4	284	46.6	277	45.5	21	3.5	609
1995-96	23	3.6	332	51.7	273	42.5	14	2.2	642
1996-97	24	3.6	341	51.3	293	44.1	6	1.0	664
1997-98	26	4.4	299	50.2	259	43.4	12	2.0	596
1998-99	22	3.7	289	48.7	274	46.1	9	1.5	594

Welbeck College is the Army's 6th Form College. The majority of its students are from the State sector.

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Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many and what percentage of officers accepted for training at Sandhurst Military College have been discharged for medical reasons before completing their training, broken down by company, in each of the last five years. [103870]

Mr. Spellar: The information is not available in the detail requested. The numbers of British Officer Cadets who have been medically discharged from the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in each of the last five calendar years, are as follows:

Calendar year	Numbers medically discharged	Total in training
1995	40 (6%)	686
1996	26 (4%)	642
1997	(16)22 (3%)	751
1998	(16)19 (3%)	663
1999	(16)6 (1%)	598

(16) There are a number of cadets who are still undergoing treatment/remedial training and who may yet be medically discharged

Gulf War (Friendly Fire)

Mr. Dalyell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what facilities his Department provided for the US Army Depleted Uranium Assessment Unit to investigate the medical results and contamination data relating to British troops injured or killed by friendly fire in the Gulf conflict. [103654]

Mr. Spellar [holding answer 21 December 1999]: None. The US Department of Defense informs us that there is no "US Army Depleted Uranium Assessment Unit". The Ministry of Defence is not aware of any

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"friendly fire" incidents during which British troops were injured or killed by depleted uranium-based ammunition during the Gulf conflict.

Unexploded Grenade (Falkirk)

Mr. Canavan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the incident on 15 December when schoolboys discovered a grenade near the Forth and Clyde Canal at Falkirk; and if he will make a statement about public safety in respect of other ammunition in that area. [103916]

Mr. Spellar: A World War 2 vintage No. 36 Mills bomb, common issue during that period, was discovered in the area of the Forth and Clyde Canal near Falkirk High School by pupils from the school on Wednesday 15 December 1999 following excavation work at the site. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal team from the Army was immediately called to the scene and successfully destroyed the device. There has been no recorded training with weapons previously in the vicinity of the school and it has not been possible to identify the reason for the grenade being there.

With respect to other arms and ammunition in the area, I can confirm that, wherever arms and ammunition are stored on an Army establishment, this is done in accordance with the appropriate regulations. These are written to ensure that arms and ammunition are secure at all times. I can assure you that the arrangements at the nearby Territorial Army Unit at Grangemouth (153 Workshop Coy REME (V)) are in accordance with these regulations.

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Type 45 Destroyer

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the 12 Ship Programme for the Type 45 Destroyer will (a) start and (b) be completed. [103924]

Mr. Kilfoyle: The Type 45 Destroyer programme is already under way and on 23 November 1999 BAE Systems was appointed as Prime Contractor and awarded a contract to complete the Preparation For Demonstration phase. As regards the delivery programme for the Type 45 warships, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 December 1999, Official Report, column 342W.

Horizon Project

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost was of UK involvement in the Horizon Project; and what the cost of withdrawing from the project was. [103925]

Mr. Kilfoyle: This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Defence Procurement Agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Sir Robert Walmsley to Mr. Mike Hancock, dated 10 January 2000:

I am replying to your question to the Secretary of State for Defence about the cost of UK involvement in the tri-national Horizon Frigate Programme. This matter falls to me to answer within my area of responsibility as Chief of Defence Procurement and Chief Executive of the Defence Procurement Agency.

As was made clear in evidence to the House of Commons Defence Committee on 16 June 1999, the UK did not withdraw from Horizon. The three countries involved agreed not to proceed to the next phase. Phase 1 of the Horizon Programme (project Definition and Initial Design) was subsequently completed at the end of October 1999. It was also mentioned in evidence that about £100M that had been spent on Horizon (including spend on NFR90 and other studies). This figure covered UK expenditure on the Programme up to 31 March 1999 and I expect the final amount to be under £120M.

Until the contract for the Demonstration and First of Class Phase of the Programme is placed, I am unable to say precisely how much of the investment in Horizon will translate into the national Type 45 programme but I can confirm that our plans for the Type 45 Destroyer build on the work accomplished in the design definition phase of the Horizon Programme and the Prime Contractor has indicated that he will pull through some 70% of the Horizon output (Horizon costs were shared equally between the three nations).

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