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10 Dec 2002 : Column 220W—continued
Foxhunting
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the terms of the licence under which fox hunting occurs on his Department's land. [86609]
Dr. Moonie: A copy of the current licence will be placed in the Library of the House.
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Future Carriers
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of steel required for the future carriers will be produced in the UK. [84087]
Dr. Moonie: This will be a matter for the Prime Contractor when selected.
Guards Battalions
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many trained officers and soldiers serve in the Guards battalions, broken down by nationality; [86003]
- (2) what the (a) establishment and (b) current strength is of each of the regular Scottish infantry battalions; and if he will list each element of company strength serving in them; [85998]
(3) what the (a) establishment and (b) the current strengths is of each of the regiments in the Foot Guards; and if he will list each element of company strength serving with them, indicating where each battalion has soldiers attached to it from another battalion, which battalion they are from and in what numbers. [86004]
Dr. Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
International Defence Projects
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list aborted international defence projects to which the United Kingdom has subscribed development costs since 1997; what the cost was to the United Kingdom of each; and who the partner nations were. [86379]
Dr. Moonie [holding answer 9 December 2002]: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
MOD Staff (Scotland)
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the Department's civilian jobs are in Scotland, broken down by location. [86000]
Dr. Moonie: The information requested is set out in the following table showing the position as at 1 October 2002.
| Scottish county | FTE strength |
|---|---|
| Borders | 2 |
| Central | 321 |
| Dumfries | 32 |
| Fife | 964 |
| Grampian | 871 |
| Highland | 75 |
| Lothian | 581 |
| Shetland IS. | 31 |
| Strathclyde | 5,059 |
| Tayside | 504 |
| Western IS. | 4 |
| Total | 8,444 |
1. Figures include full time equivalent values for part timers.
2. Figures are individually rounded and may not sum precisely to the totals shown.
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Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff are employed in Scotland by (a) his Department and (b) executive agencies responsible to his Department; where these staff are located; and how many staff are employed in (i) England, (ii) London and the South East, (iii) Wales, (iv) Northern Ireland and (v) the United Kingdom. [86002]
Dr. Moonie: The information requested is set out in the following tables showing the position as at 1 October 2002.
| MOD (excluding agencies) | Executive agencies | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Borders | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Central | 132 | 189 | 321 |
| Dumfries | 25 | 7 | 32 |
| Fife | 526 | 439 | 964 |
| Grampian | 728 | 144 | 871 |
| Highland | 41 | 34 | 75 |
| Lothian | 448 | 133 | 581 |
| Shetland IS. | 20 | 11 | 31 |
| Strathclyde | 1,054 | 4,005 | 5,059 |
| Tayside | 174 | 330 | 504 |
| Western IS. | — | 4 | 4 |
| Total | 3,148 | 5,296 | 8,444 |
Notes:
1. Figures include full time equivalent values for part timers.
2. Figures are individually rounded and may not sum precisely to the totals shown.
| Specified locations | Strengths |
|---|---|
| London and the South East | 25,008 |
| England | 66,665 |
| Wales | 4,224 |
| Northern Ireland | 3,221 |
| United Kingdom | 82,554 |
Notes:
1. Figures include full time equivalent values for part timers.
2. Figures are individually rounded and may not sum precisely to the totals shown.
3. Figures in the breakdown exclude 2,348 MOD civilian staff for whom allocation to a specific region is not possible.
Nimrod MRA4
Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the Nimrod MRA4 to enter service; and what delays have been encountered with this project. [85454]
Dr. Moonie: The current contract requirement for the first aircraft to be delivered into service is August 2004 and the In-Service Date requirement of seven aircraft is March 2005. The current contract dates result from the contract re-negotiation that took place in
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1999, following technical and programme difficulties encountered by BAE Systems in meeting the original contract placed in 1996.
More recently, BAE Systems have acknowledged a delay in the programme for the first flight of Nimrod MRA4. This delay has been caused by a combination of factors arising from the challenging concurrent engineering and parallel working on this highly complex aircraft. The consequences of first flight slippage are being urgently examined, jointly, by the Company and the Department. The results of this work so far indicate that first flight is unlikely before the second half of 2003 and we continue to examine the consequences this may have on ISD. Until this work is completed, it would be premature to speculate on the impact of this slippage on the timescale for the entry into service of Nimrod MRA4.
RAF Lynham
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his latest estimate is of the recent possession valuation of the RAF Lyneham site after contamination re-evaluation. [85183]
Dr. Moonie: No decision has yet been taken on the future role of RAF Lyneham. Were the site to be surplus to Ministry of Defence requirements, and to be sold for agricultural use, the estate has been estimated to be worth #11.25 million. This includes an estimation of remediation cost of #0.75 million.
Smallpox
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what training and exercises have been carried out to prepare for the deployment of the armed forces in the event of an outbreak of smallpox; and if he will make a statement. [85890]
Dr. Moonie [holding answer 9 December 2002]: The armed forces are not responsible for dealing with an outbreak of smallpox. The Department of Health would take the lead and could, if appropriate, call upon the limited skills of the armed forces. These skills are subject to constant refinement through training and exercises.
Details of the response to a smallpox outbreak are available on the DoH website at www. doh. gov.uk/epcu/cbr/biol/smallpoxplan.htm.
Weapons Training
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many military (a) units and (b) personnel are trained to deal with nuclear, chemical or biological incidents within the UK. [84529]
Dr. Moonie [holding answer 2 December 2002]: The United Kingdom has a capability, involving the emergency services and a number of Government Departments and agencies, to make safe terrorist chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) devices. The Ministry of Defence and the armed forces would contribute to the response with personnel and equipment from a number of units based in the UK and available to respond at very short notice. I am
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withholding precise details of the number of units and personnel in accordance with Exemption la of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
Beyond this, all armed forces personnel are given basic training to protect themselves in a nuclear, biological or chemical (NBC) environment. The Joint NBC Regiment receives specialist training. It is configured for military operations (primarily overseas) but could provide assistance to the civil power in the UK if appropriate and if not already deployed.
The Civil Contingencies Reaction Forces announced earlier this year will also be equipped and trained to protect themselves in a CBRN environment if called upon to assist the civil power during an incident in the UK.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Clean Water
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on the assistance given by her Department to increase the provision of clean water to (a) Zambia, (b) Lesotho, (c) Mozambique, (d) Zimbabwe, (e) Swaziland and (d) Botswana. [85644]
Clare Short: In Zambia, DFID is providing basic infrastructure and other services, including water supply systems and sanitation improvements, in urban areas of Lusaka and Livingstone. So far, 420,000 urban and peri-urban poor have improved their livelihoods as a result of the project.
In Lesotho, our current support is focused on their Poverty Reduction Strategy, which includes the water sector within a comprehensive approach to planning government and donor spending.
In Mozambique, DFID is providing #3.8 million through UNICEF to a Rural Water Supply and Sanitation project in Zambezia Province in Northern Mozambique. The expected outcome is to develop and implement a Provincial Rural Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Master Plan. This will include affordable water and sanitation options for poor communities. It will prioritise under-served geographical areas and will operate in partnership with the Provincial Government.
In Zimbabwe, DFID's programme is focused on the humanitarian crisis but we spent #8 million in the late 1990s on helping to develop national water policy, and assisting the implementation of the Integrated Rural Water and Sanitation Programme in Bikita and Lupane Districts.
In Swaziland, DFID has provided #1.98 million, with matched funding by the Government of Swaziland, for a three year rural water supply programme building the capacity of rural communities to manage their water supply systems. Consideration is also being given to some funding for school water supplies as part of the current emergency relief programme.
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In Botswana we are only indirectly involved in rural water supply, through a #2 million contribution to the Government's recently approved Sustainable Rural Livelihoods Programme, intended to support a broad range of initiatives having an impact on rural poverty.
DFID is also supporting the water sector in southern Africa through regional initiatives, including #0.9 million of support to the regional office of the Global Water Partnership, and have made provision for # 2.0 million to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) aimed at both capacity building and support for specific pro-poor projects in the water sector.
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