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15 Sept 2003 : Column 511W—continued

Traffic Calming

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions his Department has held with each of the emergency services regarding traffic calming schemes; and if he will make a statement. [128793]

Mr. Jamieson: My Department wrote to all local field operatives in the emergency services on 2 September 2003 encouraging them to work with local authorities whenever new traffic calming schemes are proposed. Similar letters were also sent to every local authority reminding them of the legal requirement to consult the emergency services wherever road humps are introduced. This letter also strongly urged local authorities to consult the emergency services when all other traffic calming measures are proposed.

Rail Performance Statistics

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the most recent rail performance indicators from train operating companies. [129068]

Mr. McNulty: The Strategic Rail Authority publishes rail performance statistics in the quarterly National Rail Trends (NRT) and six-monthly On Track publications. Copies of both publications are placed in the Library of the House. The next edition of NRT will be published on 19 September 2003 and provide performance data for the quarter April to June 2003.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on NATO's leadership of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. [129034]

Mr. Hoon: Since 11 August 2003, NATO has given enhanced support to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul, including providing the Headquarters for the Force. NATO has made an excellent start in its new role and the Alliance is now looking at ways to make the ISAF still more effective.

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on security operations in Afghanistan. [129067]

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Mr. Ingram: Coalition operations against remnants of the Taliban and their terrorist supporters continue, especially in the South and East of Afghanistan.

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on military support for the government of Afghanistan. [129069]

Mr. Ingram: I have nothing to add to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 8 September 2003, Official Report, column 10.

Aircraft Carriers

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which aircraft will be used on the new aircraft carriers. [128534]

Mr. Ingram: The primary aircraft for the Future Aircraft Carrier (CVF) will be the Short Take Off Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant of the Lockheed Martin F35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF). CVF will have the capacity to operate a wide range of aircraft including that selected to provide maritime airborne surveillance and control and helicopters in a wide variety of roles that could include anti-submarine warfare, attack, surveillance and support. As CVF will be built to an innovative and adaptable design, it will be capable of modification to operate future generations of air platforms, such as aircraft requiring a catapult launch and arrested recovery.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the estimated conversion cost is for the Eurofighter Typhoon to operate from the new aircraft carriers. [128536]

Mr. Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 20 May 2003, Official Report, column 678W.

British Army Training Unit Suffield

Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the importance of the Canadian BATSU facility for the British Army. [129491]

Mr. Ingram: The British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS) facility fulfils a valuable role in the training of units and formations to bring them to the required readiness state.

Campaign Medals

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the medal for those who served in the Suez Canal Zone between 1951 and 1954 will be available; and what arrangements have been made for its presentation. [129305]

Mr. Caplin: The four medal offices are preparing to issue medals to eligible veterans pending final agreement of the qualifying criteria. Stocks of the Naval General Service Medal 1915–62 and the General Service Medal 1918–62, their associated ribbons and the new clasp are being prepared by the medal offices in anticipation of that approval by Her Majesty. Once eligibility has been confirmed, the medal will be posted to the recipient.

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Chatham Dockyard (Radiation Records)

Jonathan Shaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many former Chatham Dockyard workers have received their radiation dose records. [129735]

Mr. Caplin: 241 workers have received radiation dose record summaries under the Ministry of Defence Radiation Workers Counselling Scheme.

Jonathan Shaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many former Chatham Dockyard workers have been given estimated radiation dose records. [129736]

Mr. Caplin: It was necessary to enter estimated external doses into the statutory records of those radiation workers likely to receive higher radiation doses (called classified persons) when the film badge issued to these workers was lost or damaged. In such circumstances an estimated dose was entered onto an individual's dose record by entering doses from direct reading dosimeters worn by the individual. On the rare occasions when no dosimeter information was available, a calculation was made based upon time of exposure and radiation dose rates in areas where the individual worked. Since these details were entered onto individual records and there was no requirement to record the number of such events centrally, the numbers could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Compensation (Asbestosis)

Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average compensation per person paid by his Department to claimants suffering from asbestosis was in each of the last three years. [129706]

Mr. Caplin: The amount paid in compensation and the associated legal costs of cases brought against the Ministry of Defence are not in general recorded separately and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost. The average amount paid in compensation and legal costs by the MOD to claimants suffering from asbestos related disease for the last three years was as follows:

	£
2000–01	35,556
2002–02	26,644
2002–03	36,233

Contracts

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many contracts issued by his Department in the last five years have included no UK build. [128538]

Mr. Ingram: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will ensure that all contracts awarded by his Department include a provision that a minimum of 50 per cent. of the work will be carried out in the UK. [128539]

Mr. Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 13 January 2003, Official Report, columns 405–06W.

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Service Personnel (Religious Faith)

Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces profess (a) Christianity, (b) Judaism, (c) Islam, (d) Hinduism and (e) other faiths; how many chaplains from each faith are attached to the forces; and if he will make a statement. [129322]

Mr. Caplin: The numbers of armed forces personnel with the following recorded religion are:

Religion	Number
Christianity	191,985
Judaism	65
Islam	280
Hinduism	140
Other	925

Note:

Figures have been rounded to prevent disclosure of sensitive personal data and exclude those with no recorded or declared religion.

There are 295 full-time commissioned chaplains in the armed forces, drawn from the main Christian denominations to which the majority of Service personnel belong. They have a responsibility to offer spiritual, moral and pastoral care to all Service personnel and their families, irrespective of religion or belief. The relatively small number of personnel from faiths other than Christianity, serving in a wide range of units and locations in the United Kingdom and overseas, does not at present justify the appointment of dedicated clergy from those faiths, but the position is kept under review. Leading members of the Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faiths have been appointed to act as religious advisers to the armed forces.

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