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7 Nov 2002 : Column 479W—continued
Nuclear Test Veterans
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what negotiations have been undertaken with the representatives of nuclear test veterans; what compensation has been offered; what agreement has been reached; and if he will make a statement. [79656]
Mr. Ingram: The Ministry of Defence has had no recent negotiations with representatives of nuclear test veterans. There are no grounds for general compensation for those who participated in the British atmospheric nuclear tests in the 1950s. Veterans who believe that their health has been affected by participation in the tests may apply for a War Pension.
Volunteer Reservists
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many volunteer reservists have enlisted as sponsored reserves since the programme's inspection; and what the recruitment targets were for sponsored reserves when the programme was introduced. [80293]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Nuclear Installations
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the meaning of the phrase
- "strengthen the arrangements for consequence management,"
in paragraph 27 of the Government response to the Defence Select Committee report on Defence and Security in the UK, HC 1230, Session 2001–02, in respect of the vulnerability of nuclear installations to terrorist attack. [80365]
Mr. Ingram: Discussions have taken place involving several Government Departments, the Office for Civil Nuclear Security, the Health and Safety Executive, local authorities, the police and other emergency services, to review the roles and capabilities of those authorities likely to be required to respond to a nuclear incident. Specific importance has been attached to improving co-ordination, communication and the provision of specialist capabilities.
Missile Defence
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimates have been made of the cost of United Kingdom participation in national missile defence; and if he will make a statement. [79652]
Mr. Hoon: No precise estimates can be made at this stage. The United States itself has made no decision on the final shape of its overall missile defence architecture and its final costs have yet to be determined. There are no specific options for the deployment of missile defences for the United Kingdom to assess, and no decision has been made on the acquisition of missile defences.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations have been received from research bodies on peace campaigns concerning national missile defence; and if they will be published by his Department. [79657]
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Mr. Hoon: The Ministry of Defence has received numerous representations from various bodies and individuals concerning missile defence; publication of their letters is a matter for them.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions have been held with other NATO member states on the cost, timescale and purpose of national missile defence. [79658]
Mr. Hoon: NATO is studying the options for missile defence specifically for the protection of deployed forces, in addition to discussions on a wider range of missile defence issues. The United Kingdom participates in these NATO discussions, and also engages NATO allies bilaterally on missile defence issues as part of our regular contacts.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure has been incurred at (a) RAF Fylingdales and (b) Menwith Hill in connection with National Missile Defence; and if he will make a statement. [79694]
Mr. Hoon: We have not received a request from the United States to site elements of missile defence in the United Kingdom, and have not incurred expenditure on any works at RAF Fylingdales or RAF Menwith Hill in preparation for, or anticipation of, any such request.
Iraq
Mr. Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total cost to date is of maintaining the British force in support of the no-fly zone in Iraq. [79986]
Mr. Ingram: Our records do not separately identify expenditure incurred in maintaining the no fly zones. However, the table below sets out the overall additional expenditure incurred by the Ministry of Defence as a direct result of operations in the Gulf from 1992–1993 onwards.
| Year | # Million |
|---|---|
| 1992–93 | 551 |
| 1993–94 | 179 |
| 1994–95 | 58 |
| 1995–96 | 14 |
| 1996–97 | 6 |
| 1997–98 | 16 |
| 1998–99 | 35 |
| 1999–2000 | 28 |
| 2000–01 | 25 |
| 2001–02 (estimate) | 22(2) |
| 2002–03 (estimate) | 26(2) |
Note:
(2) denotes figure calculated on a resource basis; all previous figures are cash-based.
I will write to my hon. Friend concerning expenditure in 2001–2002 and 2002–2003 and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations have been received from the government of Cyprus or members of the Cypriot public concerning the use of United Kingdom sovereign bases in Cyprus in preparation for a future conflict with Iraq; and if he will make a statement. [79650]
7 Nov 2002 : Column 481W
Mr. Hoon: No decision regarding the commitment of United Kingdom Armed Forces to any potential conflict in Iraq has yet been taken. Military action is neither imminent nor inevitable.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many RAF sorties over Iraq there have been (a) north of 30th parallel and (b) south of 30th parallel not covered by the no-fly zone in the last year and what the total volume of explosives dropped in each area was. [79649]
Mr. Hoon: The northern no-fly zone covers the area of Iraq lying north of the 36th parallel. The southern no-fly zone covers the area lying south of the 33rd.
The RAF takes part in Coalition patrols within the no-fly zones. There have been no sorties by the RAF in the free-fly area between the two zones in the last year.
Enron
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what meetings (a) he and (b) his senior departmental officials have had with Enron and its subsidiaries in the last two years. [32431]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Volunteers
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of his staff in each of the past two years have been granted a day's paid leave to work as a volunteer; and if he will make a statement. [39741]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Television Sets
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) analogue and (b) integrated digital television sets his Department has purchased in each of the last 24 months; and if he will make a statement. [38173]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Capita
Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many contracts the Department has with Capita. [38393]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Criminal Damage
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost has been of criminal damage to his Department's buildings in each of the last four years. [44849]
7 Nov 2002 : Column 482W
Dr. Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Thematic Networks Programme
Mr. Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures are taken to ensure that EU funding provided to Israel under the Thematic networks programme is not used for projects which could have military applications. [45186]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Saville Inquiry
Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what costs have been incurred since 19th December 2001 by his Department in connection with the Saville Inquiry; and what his estimate is of the final cost to his Department. [46027]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
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