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Kosovo

Mr. Nigel Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the security situation in Kosovo. [122648]

Mr. Spellar: I refer my hon. Friend to the oral answer I gave earlier today to my hon. Friend the Member for Workington (Mr. Campbell-Savours), Official Report, columns 16-17.

Dr. Godman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he last met his colleagues from other NATO member states to discuss the deployment of military forces in Kosovo. [122660]

Mr. Spellar: The situation in Kosovo has been a major subject for discussion among NATO Defence Ministers since the crisis began. The Secretary of State and other Ministers meet colleagues from NATO and other countries regularly on both a bilateral and multilateral basis. The topics for discussion range widely.

The next formal meeting of NATO Defence Ministers is on 8 and 9 June, at which he will discuss a wide range of issues including Kosovo.

Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of available stocks of (a) precision guided munitions and (c) non-precision guided munitions were used during operation Allied Force. [124316]

Mr. Spellar: The numbers of munitions used during Operation Allied Force were published by the Ministry of Defence last year, in my right hon. Friend, the then Secretary of State, Lord Robertson's account of the Kosovo crisis. Details of the percentage of our stockpile this expenditure represented would assist a potential adversary to assess our operational capability. I am therefore withholding this information in accordance with exemption 1 (Defence, Security and International Relations) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

Medal Awards (Suez)

Mr. Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received calling for the award of a medal for those who served in the Suez Canal zone in the early 1950s. [122671]

5 Jun 2000 : Column: 9W

Dr. Moonie: Since this Government took office, the Ministry of Defence has received three written Parliamentary Questions calling for the award of a medal for service in the Suez Canal Zone in the early 1950s. We have also received 229 Parliamentary Inquiries from 175 hon. Members, and my officials have dealt with 164 letters from 71 members of the public. Five Early Day Motions have been tabled. In March 1998, my predecessor held a meeting with a delegation of veterans at which he was handed a petition containing some 20,000 names, and in March this year, I held a meeting with two hon. Members with an interest in this subject.

Multipart Tender

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the tender submitted by Multipart, Chorley, for the stock and supply of spare parts for the armed forces. [122678]

Dr. Moonie: Multipart, through an appropriate competitive tendering process, have been appointed the 'service provider' to Vickers Defence Systems (VDS) for the provision, procurement, storage and distribution of Challenger 2 specific consumable spares (Project CRISP). A decision on whether Project CRISP will proceed is expected in late June.

5 Jun 2000 : Column: 10W

Demining Assistance (Libya)

Mr. Frank Cook: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assistance has been provided to the Government of Libya for humanitarian demining; and if he will make a statement. [124560]

Mr. Spellar: None.

Warships

Mr. Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many warships have been (a) ordered, (b) laid down, (c) launched and (d) commissioned since 1 May 1997. [122821]

Dr. Moonie: 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 Robert Walmsley to Mr. Christopher Gill, dated 5 June 2000:



5 Jun 2000 : Column: 9W

List of vessels by category

Class of vesselVessel nameLaid downLaunchedCommissioned
Type 23 FrigateHMS SutherlandYes
HMS KentYes
HMS PortlandYesYes
HMS St. AlbansYesYes
Loading Platform Docking (Replacement)HMS AlbionYes
HMS BulwarkYes
Single Role Minehunter (SRMH)HMS PenzanceYes
HMS PembrokeYesYes
HMS GrimsbyYesYesYes
HMS BangorYesYes
HMS RamseyYesYes
HMS BlythYes
HMS ShorehamYes
SSNHMS AstuteYes
SSBNHMS VengeanceYesYes
Offshore Survey Vessel (OSV)HMS ScottYes
Landing Platform Helicopter (LPH)HMS OceanYes
Total1087

5 Jun 2000 : Column: 9W

Staff Secondments

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff from his Department were seconded to private sector companies in (a) May 1997 to April 1998, (b) May 1998 to April 1999 and (c) May 1999 to April 2000; and if he will list in each case the companies to which staff were sent, the names and ranks of the staff involved and the duration of the secondment. [123428]

Dr. Moonie [holding answer 24 May 2000]: Information, by financial year, on personnel on secondment to the private sector from my Department is as follows. 1

5 Jun 2000 : Column: 10W

1 April 1997 to 31 March 1998

CompanyGradeDuration
Avery BerkelSCS1 year
AWE plcGd 62 years
Babtie GroupGd 71 year 3 months
BAEGd 22 years 6 months
Gd 72 years 3 months
SPTO1 year 11 months
British AirwaysSEO (IT)2 years 6 months
British Marine Technology Ltd.GD 63 years
Bull Information Systems Ltd.CO33 years
CO23 years
CO22 years 8 months
CO31 year
CO31 year
GEC MarineGd 41 year
GKN SankeyHEO5 months
Horizon IJVC Ltd.Gd 72 years
Magnox/BNFLGd 73 years
Neville RussellEO2 months
R. Twining & Co.HEO6 months
RaytheonSCS3 years
Rolls Royce & Assoc.Gd 62 years
Rover PowertrainHPTO(D)1 year 6 months
SERCO IFTC Ltd.FSO2 years
Shell UKSEO3 months
HEO3 months
Thomson Marconi Sonar Ltd.SPTO 2 years 6 months
Gd 511 months
HEO(IT)5 years
TranscoHEO6 months
SEO4 months
Zeneca PharmaceuticalsHEO(MA)4 months

5 Jun 2000 : Column: 11W

In addition we had 209 miscellaneous interchange activities--mainly trainee engineer/scientist and students who undertake various planned short-term attachments to different companies as part of their training.

1 April 1998 to 31 March 1999

CompanyGradeDuration
Anglian WaterHEO5 months
AWE plcGd 62 years
Babtie GroupGd 71 year 3 months
BAeGd 22 years 6 months
Gd 72 years 5 months
EO2 years
Barr & StroudGd 72 years
British AirwaysHEO6 months
HEO(MA)1 years
SEO(IT)2 years 6 months
British Marine Technology Ltd.Gd 63 years
HPTO1 year
British TelecomHEO3 months
Bull Information Systems Ltd.CO33 years
CO23 years
CO22 years 8 months
CO31 year
CO31 year
HEO(IT)5 years
Defence Industries CouncilHEO1 year
Devonport Management Ltd.HPTO1 year 5 months
Ernst & YoungGD 76 months
GEC MarconiGd 62 years
SPTO2 years
GEC MarineGd 41 year
Horizon IJVC Ltd.Gd 72 years
Lockhead MartinSPTO2 years
Magnox/BNFLGd 73 years
Marconi Electronic SystemsSCS1 year 3 months
New Zealand National Institute of Water(4)C12 years
Pall Europe LedSEO7 months
R. Twining & Co.HEO6 months
SEO3 months
Robert FlemingGd 72 years
Rolls RoyceC11 year
Rolls Royce & Assoc.Gd 62 years
Gd 61 year 8 months
Rover PowertrainHPTO(D)1 year 6 months
SERCO IFTC Ltd.FSO2 years
Thomson Marconi Sonar Ltd.SPTO2 years 6 months
Gd 511 months
TranscoHEO(MA)6 months
SEO4 months
Vauxhall Motors Ltd.Gd 61 year 9 months
Zeneca Agro-ChemicalsHEO6 months
Zeneca PharmaceuticalsHEO(MA)4 months

5 Jun 2000 : Column: 12W

In addition we had 213 miscellaneous interchange activities--mainly trainee engineer/scientist and students who undertake various planned short-term attachments to different companies as part of their training.

1 April 1999 to 31 March 2000

CompanyGradeDuration
Anglian WaterHEO5 months
AWE plcGd 62 years
BAeGd 72 years 5 months
EO2 years
EO1 year 4 months
BAe AirbusHPTO1 year
BAe Royal OrdnanceHPTO1 year
Barr & StroudGd 72 years
British AirwaysHEO6 months
HEO(IT)2 years 6 months
British Marine Technology Ltd.Gd 63 years
HPTO1 years
Bull Information Systems Ltd.CO33 years
CO23 years
CO22 years 8 months
HEO(IT)4 years
Defence Industries CouncilHEO1 year
Devonport Management Ltd.HPTO1 year 5 months
European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting(4)C11 year
GEC (now BAe Systems)Gd 62 years
GEC MarconiGd 62 years
SPTO2 years
Horizon IJVC Ltd.Gd 72 years
Lockhead MartinSPTO2 years
Magnox/BNFLGd 73 years
Marconi AvionicsGroup Capt.1 year
Marconi Electronic SystemsSCS1 year 3 months
New Zealand National Institute of Water(4)C12 years
Northrop GrummenSCS1 year 6 months
Pall Europe LedSEO7 months
RaytheonSCS2 years
Renishaw plcSPTO1 year
Robert FlemingGd 72 years
Rolls RoyceC112 months
Rolls Royce & Assoc.Gd 62 years
Gd 61 year 8 months
Thomson-CSFSCS2 years
Thomson Marconi Sonar Ltd.SPTO2 years 6 months
Vauxhall Motors Ltd.Gd 61 year 9 months

(3) All figures exclude DERA

(4) Met Office


5 Jun 2000 : Column: 13W

Figures for trainee engineers/scientists and students are not yet available for 1999-2000.


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