Examination of Witnesses (Questions 280
- 299)
WEDNESDAY 20 NOVEMBER 2002
COLONEL MICHAEL
J E TAYLOR CBE TD DL, COLONEL
SIR DAVID
A TRIPPIER RD JP DL AND
COLONEL J RICHARD
G PUTNAM CBE TD DL
280. Again, so I may understand, listening to
questions that were put to you by others earlier on, I took down
one answer just at random—it was a "bucket full of
holes". I know what you meant so I do not want a justification
of that in any way at all, but it just seems to me that maybe
you do not have the skills base that means you can keep and maintain,
given the answers you gave to all of my colleagues? What about
your inability to retain?
(Colonel Taylor) If you will forgive me, I think you
are using quite strong and colourful language—
281. I am not known for using strong, colourful
language, as I think my colleagues will attest!
(Colonel Taylor) On the phrase "inability to
retain", the point we would want to make is that retention
is a big challenge and a problem but that is not to imply that
the skills base of the reservists who are available does not remain
very high indeed. The retention issue is more about retaining
the youngsters and the more junior people but the skill base is
strong and solid and very much available. The other way the reserves
will help in the fight on terrorism is that, within the concept
of the New Chapter, reservists will be available and are being
used already to supplement the regular forces and to release sometimes
those regulars who are required somewhere else, because they have
particular knowledge and skills, and the reservists can come in
and, to use a bit of jargon, "backfill"—we do
not like the word but it is accurate—to release people who
then have the relevant skills to go off and do something else.
So it is another contribution that can be made.
282. I have one more question and I will try
not to use colourful language as best as I can! I just want to
be clear about this question: the whole time parallels are being
drawn with the United States, and we had an example this morning
where the suggestion was being made that there should be a minister
in Cabinet responsible for home security. That is not the question
I want to ask: the question I want to ask is, within your bailiwicks,
is there anything you are looking at in the United States to try
and learn from?
(Colonel Taylor) There is already a lot of work being
done—not by us but by members of the Territorial Army at
senior level—to look at what is done within the States using
the National Guard to support their regular forces. Those ideas
are being incorporated and developed and we are picking up on
those and our advice is being sought on them so there will be
radical thinking coming in about the wider use of the reserves,
and the greater utility and greater integration. That is really
developing out of that study which is going on.
283. Lastly, is there any timeframe to that?
(Colonel Taylor) It is happening at this moment. The
developmental work around those policies and thoughts is going
on and we are being made privy to some of those ideas, so that
we can support where appropriate.
(Colonel Sir David Trippier) The integration, Chairman,
that Mike has just referred to was one benefit that came out of
the original SDR, and this point has to be made. The truth is
that, in the past, the Territorial Army has had an experience
of battalions, regiments if you like, going through a fortnight
away as a complete unit, and this you are very well aware of.
What came out of SDR was a closer integration between the Territorial
Army and the regular army in terms of individual replacement people
going to sit alongside those people who were in the regular forces
replacing someone perhaps who was coming back off leave. That
system had already been in existence with the Royal Naval Reserve
and Royal Marines Reserve for many a year, and what that has led
to is a raising of standards right across the piece which is very
important in terms of Mr Cran's question, and that form of integration
has helped certainly, and will help with regard to SDR New Chapter.
Chairman: This sounds like the second
person to visit Frank in his surgery on Saturday—!
Mr Roy
284. I have a very quick question. Who is responsible
for the welfare support of deployed reservists and their families?
(Colonel Taylor) We would regard that as a very major
activity where we can support the chain of command, and we have
already got that established and that is one of the roles we will
be helping with in the context of any mobilisation in the future.
285. Is that seen as an on-going problem by
the families at the moment as regards changes outside?
(Colonel Taylor) I do not think any of us have any
evidence to that effect at the moment because I do not think sufficient
numbers have been got. Remember that most of the reservists who
are involved in operational activities have volunteered for it
and have cleared their lines before they have gone off. We have
not yet had to deal with a major compulsory mobilisation which
would generate those sorts of problems.
286. And in the case of deployed personnel who
live abroad, is there a difference between the family support
that the reservists would get and that of a full-timer?
(Colonel Taylor) There would be some differences because
when you are talking about regular servicemen abroad they have
their regimental infrastructure behind them with families' officers
and so forth because the families are likely to be together in
one place, whereas with the reserves you have families scattered
all over, which is why our people are going to be very valuable
because we have that regional presence that can help out on that.
The families of our reservists, of course, will be scattered all
over the areas—
287. But families of reservists do need that
same level of support—?
(Colonel Taylor) I am sorry, forgive me. Yes. We will
do our utmost so to do but we do not have that quite that same
infrastructure in place that the regulars do, for obvious reasons.
Mr Howarth
288. Turning back to the CCRFs, do you think
that the nature of the challenge of serving in these new units
is going to attract people into the reserve forces?
(Colonel Sir David Trippier) Yes, I do. I think there
is a great attraction to it. If you go back in time and look at
what I used to call the "ever readies", and that is
going back quite a long time, there was a caché attached
to that so that these people would be seen, in my view, as being
somewhat special. I think they would be very proud of their role,
particularly in this new capacity. As Mr Mercer referred to earlier,
there will be a higher commitment and certainly more training
required, so I think that in itself will be a great plus point.
289. And are people who are already serving
anxious to volunteer?
(Colonel Sir David Trippier) I do not think there
will be any shortage of volunteers. I accept it is a chain of
command.
290. What is the buzz at the moment?
(Colonel Sir David Trippier) It is very good.
291. So people are saying, "I would like
to sign up"?
(Colonel Sir David Trippier) Absolutely.
(Colonel Putnam) I think it will help retention because
we talked earlier on about the non viable units of Territorial
Army infantry battalions immediately post SDR, and this gives
them a much higher profile and a more focused role, and that must
help in retention.
292. Part of that role does require specialist
training, and we were talking earlier about whether five days
was sufficient. You were not able to tell me then what the average
amount of training would be required to make them fit for role,
but if you take the nuclear/chemical/biological attack issue and
a response thereto, how long do you reckon it is going to take
to train up people to do that, because that is going to be a critical
element?
(Colonel Putnam) There is a big issue there. In recent
weeks, some of the enhancements offered to infantry battalions
have been 29 posts watered down. They are short of transport to
move as a composite body and would therefore be dependent on coaches
and such like and some, a few, NBC suits. If NBC is considered
to be a legitimate threat, the Territorial Army soldiers are very
short of protection.
(Colonel Taylor) We are very deep in chain of command
territory here rather than our own responsibilities. Nonetheless,
the comments are valid. The other thing we need to remind you
of is that, since the end of the Cold War and the change in the
nature of the reserves' roles, NBC training, as it used to be
called, has not been a very high profile activity within the reserves
so it needs now to be raised very dramatically.
293. There is no question of people undertaking
this training and saying, "We do not like this; this is not
for us. We want to opt out"? You do not see that happening?
(Colonel Putnam) No.
294. Do you see the necessity for introducing
any kind of incentive or bounty which will pay a premium to join
up?
(Colonel Taylor) Do you mean for the individuals or
the employers?
295. I mean for the individuals.
(Colonel Taylor) It has been debated and discussed.
The general view is that it is not a good idea this time round.
The individuals who are going to be part of CCRFs, other than
the extra training days, will not get any additional money and
the assumption is that we will not need it to attract people in.
Mr Crausby
296. I have some questions on the registration
of skills or should I say the registration of haphazard bonuses.
To what extent is the registration of those skills, other than
military skills, kept within the reserves themselves?
(Colonel Taylor) Very highly so. The whole point about
the new brigade reinforcement teams will be to make sure they
have a proper handle on all that information. It is sitting there;
the units have the information. It is just a case of making sure
that when the CCRFs are being formed up that is happening.
297. It is done on a database?
(Colonel Taylor) Yes.
298. Who has access to that? Are you satisfied
that the Commander in Chief Land Forces, for instance, will have
the necessary information?
(Colonel Taylor) Through the regional brigades, yes.
299. Have they also developed relationships
between other organisations, the Red Cross, for instance, that
you feel are sufficient?
(Colonel Taylor) I would not say they are necessarily
sufficient but I have tested the water on that with my NHS hat
on talking to some people in the Ambulance Service as to what
the discussions are. I am reasonably sure that at the regional
brigade level some very effective liaison is already in place
with all the other emergency services.
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