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19 Jul 2004 : Column 25W—continued

Recruitment (Regimental Attainment)

17. Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what account he takes of the recruitment attainment by regiments when considering the future configuration of the Army. [184485]

Mr. Ingram: We continually monitor the ability of Regiments to recruit and retain personnel, their success in doing so would be one element taken into account in decisions on the future structure of the Army.

Scottish Regiments

18. Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to reorganise the structure and recruitment areas of the Scottish regiments. [184486]

Mr. Ingram: The armed forces are constantly evolving to reflect the strategic security environment in which they operate. The Defence White Paper published last December established the policy context for shaping the future structure of our armed forces. For the Army, it outlined the vision of a more balanced force that is flexible, rapidly deployable and sustainable for the variety of operational tasks that we envisage it undertaking.

Against this policy guideline, we have been working through the detailed implications for the Army's force structure. We anticipate being in a position to make announcements about the conclusions of this work shortly.

Service Personnel (Occupational Stress)

19. Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps his Department takes to assist service personnel in coping with the stresses of serving in war zones. [184487]

 
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Mr. Caplin: Preparation for dealing with potentially stressful operational situations forms part of normal training for all Service personnel All Service personnel are given pre and post deployment briefings on dealing with the possibility of post traumatic stress, including guidance on who to consult if they experience problems. Trained mental health staff are also deployed to provide advice to personnel in theatre, supported by both Defence Medical Services and our Welfare Services all of whom play such an extremely important part in supporting our forces both regular and reserve.

Departmental Agencies (Relocation)

22. Mr. Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals he has for moving the headquarters of one of his Department's agencies to the north-east of England. [184491]

Mr. Caplin: The Ministry of Defence has no plans to relocate any Defence Agency Headquarters to the North East. However, we are conducting an examination of the Defence estate as part of our estate rationalisation strategy.

Afghanistan

Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what action the Department is taking to improve the security situation in Afghanistan. [184479]

Mr. Hoon: The UK is making a major contribution to improving the security situation in Afghanistan. The transfer of control of our Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Mazar-e Sharif and Meymanek together with associated support forces, was a major step in implementing the first stage of ISAF's expansion across Afghanistan; a process we see as playing a vital role in helping the Afghans create a secure and stable country. Together with our forces in Kabul, we now contribute around 580 personnel to the ISAF, and are also engaged in providing wider support to security sector reform in Afghanistan. Looking ahead, and as my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister announced to the House on 30 June, we have offered to deploy the Headquarters of the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps to lead ISAF in 2006. This is the clearest possible evidence of our commitment to ISAF and to Afghanistan.

Mr. Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the UK contribution to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. [184489]

Mr. Hoon: Of the 580 United Kingdom personnel serving with the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, 340 are deployed to Kabul where they are assisting the Afghan Transitional Authority to maintain security. The remainder are serving in the UK-led multinational Provincial Reconstruction Teams in Mazar-e Sharif and Meymaneh, and the associated Forward Support Base, in Northern Afghanistan.

RAF Bases (US Personnel)

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, at what percentage of RAF bases RAF personnel are outnumbered by US personnel. [184492]

 
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Mr. Ingram: There are 10 RAF bases where RAF personnel are outnumbered by the United States personnel, which is approximately 17 per cent. of the principal RAF bases in the United Kingdom.

Aircraft Carriers Programme

Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future of the aircraft carriers programme. [184481]

Mr. Hoon: I refer my hon. Friend to the Written Statement made to the House earlier today.

Cadet Forces

Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the training objectives of each of the cadet forces. [184156]

Mr. Caplin [holding answer 15 July 2004]: The training objectives of each of the cadet forces are broadly similar, differing only to reflect the traditions and ethos of the parent Service. They support the key themes of the Government youth policies by providing training aimed at capacity building, maximising personal potential and social inclusion. Training is undertaken by cadets under two broad headings: military training and adventurous training in the approximate proportions of 60 per cent. and 40 per cent. respectively. The military training functions are as follows:

a. To provide the opportunity for young people to exercise responsibility and leadership, and to learn from the Services how they can be best developed.

b. To impart a basic knowledge and understanding of the role of the armed forces.

c. To encourage those who have an interest in the Services to be aware of the career opportunities the armed forces have to offer.

The adventurous training includes activities that are arduous and include an element of risk to test the courage and endurance of cadets and develop their qualities of character.

The military training syllabi contain such topics as turnout and drill, skill at arms, shooting, map and compass, fieldcraft, and first aid. Rock climbing, mountain walking, canoeing, caving, offshore sailing, sub aqua diving and parachuting are just some of the approved adventurous training activities undertaken by cadets with the view to making them better citizens.

Arms Trafficking

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his letter of 16 June to the US Defense Secretary; and what implications this has for future Government policy. [182390]

Mr. Hoon: We are working with the United States Administration to secure the necessary legislative approval to give effect to an exemption for the United Kingdom from the International Traffic in Arms Regulations as soon as possible. We remain in close contact with the Administration on this and look forward to its successful conclusion.
 
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Hawk Aircraft

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how long he expects the current fleet of Red Arrows Hawk aircraft to remain in service; and what plans he has for their replacement. [180498]

Mr. Ingram: It is expected that the current fleet of Hawk Red Arrows will continue flying into the next decade. The management of the Red Arrows fleet beyond that time frame is a matter for periodic review.

EU Military Planning/Structures

Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the Government's commitment to the EU military planning cell is in terms of (a) civilian and uniformed personnel and (b) funding. [184903]

Mr. Hoon: Both the European Union cell at SHAPE and the new civil-military cell in the EU Military Staff will be funded out of the Council Secretariat budget. No decisions on the size or manning of these have yet been taken.

Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the EU planning cell to stand up; and what its role will be. [184904]

Mr. Hoon: The European Union is setting up a cell at SHAPE to improve the strategic partnership between the EU and NATO and, in particular, the planning of "Berlin Plus" operations where the EU uses NATO's planning capability.

It is also establishing a civil-military cell within the EU Military Staff, which will improve coherence between the EU's civilian and military responses, develop expertise in managing the civilian-military interface, and undertake advance strategic planning for joint civil-military operations. This will also have the capacity to generate an ad hoc Operations Centre for an operation, in particular where a joint civil-military response is required, where no national headquarters is identified, and if agreed unanimously by EU member states.

The June European Council agreed that these cells should be established by the end of 2004, with the ability to set up an Operations Centre available by 1 January 2006.

Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the military agreements (a) in force and (b) in negotiation between EU members in respect of military structures outside NATO. [184905]

Mr. Hoon: The following table sets out the main multilateral military structures outside NATO which include European Union members. A number of these also include non-EU countries. In addition, there are many other bilateral military agreements between individual EU member states.

The United Kingdom is a party to military agreements in respect of four of these structures, as listed in the following table. Military agreements between other EU members are a matter for those member states' governments.
 
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Structure	EU participants
EAG—European Air Group	Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK
European Airlift Centre	Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, UK
Sealift Co-ordination Centre (Eindhoven)	Netherlands, UK
European Amphibious Initiative (including the UK/Netherlands Amphibious Force)	France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, UK
SHIRBRIG—Stand-by High Readiness Brigade	Austria, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden. (Observers: Czech Republic, Hungary)
SEEBRIG—South-Eastern Europe Brigade	Greece, Italy, Slovenia
NORDCAPS—Nordic Co-ordinated Arrangement for Military Peace Support	Finland, Sweden, Denmark
EUROCORPS	Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Luxembourg
EUROFOR	France, Italy, Portugal, Spain
EUROMARFOR	France, Italy, Portugal, Spain

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