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22 Mar 2004 : Column 548W—continued
Eurofighter Typhoon
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to make a statement on Tranche Two of the Eurofighter. [161361]
Mr. Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 12 February 2004, Official Report, column 1634W to my hon. Friend the Member for Pendle (Mr. Prentice).
Iraq
Mr. Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what conditions are attached to the payment of compensation to Iraqi civilians who have lost relatives due to UK actions; and if he will make a statement. [151617]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 30 January 2004]: Claims made by Iraqis for losses that do not arise in connection with combat operations are handled in accordance with the direction of the Coalition Provisional Authority—specifically Section 6 of CPA order number 17. This states that:
- 'Third party claims including those for property loss or damage and for personal injury and death or in respect of any other matter arising form or attributing to Coalition personnel or any persons employed by them, whether normally resident in Iraq or not, and that do not arise in connection with military combat operations, shall be submitted and dealt with by the Parent State whose coalition personnel, property, activities or other assets are alleged to have caused the claimed damage, in a manner consistent with the national laws of the Parent State'.
Hence, we will generally pay compensation in circumstances where the claims officer decides that, on the balance of probability, the claim would give rise to a legal liability under English Law.
22 Mar 2004 : Column 549W
Iraqi claimants who are offered compensation are required to sign a declaration that:
- 'I, name of claimant, agree to accept the sum of $xxxx in respect of the loss of my son/daughter/father/mother [name]. I understand and accept that this offer is made without admission of liability of behalf of the British contingent of the Coalition Forces in Iraq, and is a full and final settlement of all claims whatsoever relating to the incident that occurred on ddmmyyyy.'
Liability is not admitted as to do so would set a precedent for further claims relating to the incident and future claims.
This is not a liability waiver. Such a waiver would require those compensated to waive some legal rights—including the right to sue for personal injury or death. This type of waiver would normally be used for example when one is undertaking an adventurous activity that carries with it a high level of risk.
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what reports he has received of politically motivated killings within the British zone in Southern Iraq perpetrated by political groups represented within the Iraqi Governing Council. [153873]
Mr. Ingram: We are not aware of any deaths within the UK area of responsibility in Southern Iraq, which have been attributed to a person or political group represented within the Iraqi Governing Council.
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in relation to the deaths of which civilians in Iraq the UK Government has made ex-gratia payments to the families of the deceased; and how much has been paid in each case. [154477]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 11 February 2004]: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on which dates and in relation to which individuals UK forces in Iraq have informed the International Committee of the Red Cross of confirmed civilian casualties which (a) have been caused and (b) are alleged to have been caused by UK forces. [154488]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 12 February 2004]: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the house.
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 19 January 2004, Official Report, column 919W, on Iraq, how many ex-gratia payments have been made to Iraqis regardless of legal liability, broken down by (a) amount and (b) reason for the payment in each case; and if he will make a statement. [154901]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 3 March 2004]: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much fuel was purchased for UK forces in Iraq for each month since the inception of the war; from which (a) country and (b) company the fuel was purchased; and what the average price paid was. [154953]
22 Mar 2004 : Column 550W
Mr. Ingram: Between August 2003 and February 2004, United Kingdom forces purchased the following amounts of fuel from Jassim Transport and Stevedoring Co WLL, Kuwait:
| Diesel | Unleaded | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Volume (litres) | Cost (£) | Volume (litres) | Cost (£) | |
| August 2003 | 300,000 | 35,015 | 433,000 | 50,539 |
| September 2003 | 330,000 | 38,517 | 360,000 | 42,018 |
| October 2003 | 240,500 | 28,071 | 415,000 | 48,438 |
| November 2003 | 186,500 | 21,768 | 388,000 | 45,287 |
| December 2003 | 106,000 | 12,372 | 385,000 | 44,936 |
| January 2004 | 594,500 | 69,389 | 275,000 | 32,097 |
| February 2004 | 265,000 | 30,930 | 428,500 | 50,014 |
| Totals | 2,022,500 | 236,062 | 2,684,500 | 313,329 |
No figures are available prior to this date as diesel and unleaded petrol were provided to UK forces through the US supply chain.
The UK does not purchase aviation fuel for its forces in Iraq. This is supplied by the US, which has lead-nation responsibility in this area.
Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been paid to families of Iraqi civilians killed by UK personnel in Iraq. [158034]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will give the (a) age and (b) sex of those Iraqi civilians (i) whose deaths have been investigated by the Special Investigations Branch and (ii) whose deaths have resulted in the offer of ex gratia payments from the United Kingdom Government. [158861]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Joint Strike Fighter
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much money the Government has spent on research and development of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF); and what the estimated date is for the delivery of the JSF to the Ministry of Defence. [161244]
Mr. Ingram: To date, a total of £318 million has been spent on the Assessment (£144 million) and Demonstration (£174 million) phases of the Future Joint Combat Aircraft (FJCA) programme. This total includes our contributions to the JSF programme, as the means of meeting the FJCA requirement, and the costs associated with UK national activities.
While no final decisions have been taken, the FJCA in service date, based on current planning assumptions, is forecast to be 2012 with first aircraft delivery in 2010.
Land Command
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the cost of maintaining United Kingdom Land Command headquarters at Wilton is for 2003–04; [162570]
22 Mar 2004 : Column 551W
- (2) how many (a) service and (b) civilian personnel were employed at the United Kingdom Land Command headquarters in Wilton (i) in 2000, (ii) in 2001, (iii) in 2002 and (iv) at the latest available date. [162569]
Mr. Ingram: The annual cost of maintaining Headquarters Land Command for the financial year 2003–04 is estimated at £50 million. This figure includes pay, utilities, IT and other costs of those elements at Wilton that form the Headquarters. Where possible, the costs of lodger units based at the site have been excluded.
The numbers of military and civilian personnel included within the above costs are:
| Military | Civilian | |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–01 | 537 | 626 |
| 2001–02 | 532 | 630 |
| 2002–03 | 413 | 639 |
| 2003–04 | 360 | 625 |
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many troops were under the command of UK Land Command in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003. [162571]
Mr. Ingram: The number of troops under the command of Land Command in April 2003 and April 2004 was 73,030 and 77,580 respectively. The increase is primarily owing to the call out of reservists for operations overseas.
Post Office
Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 27 February 2004, from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions, Official Report, column 584W, on direct payment, how many (a) Post Office Card Accounts and (b) bank or building society accounts have (i) been requested for and (ii) are receiving payments of war pensions, broken down by region. [162735]
Mr. Caplin: The information is not available in the format requested as data is not recorded in individual regions.
The Veterans Agency records show that as at 15 March the total number of requests for Post Office Card Accounts is 42,187 and for payment into a bank/building society, 57,953.
The total number of customers who have converted to Post Office Card Accounts is 14,956. The total number of customers who have converted to a bank/building society is 57,947. The total number of war pensions paid by direct payment into an account (including Post Office Card Account) is 213,432, which represents 85.66 per cent. of the payload.
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