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18 Nov 2004 : Column 1848W—continued
Steven Jordan
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether UK (a) service personnel and (b) officials have sought to question Mr. Steven Jordan during the last three months. [193385]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Submarines
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of refitting each of the four submarines sold to Canada to make them fit to put to sea. [193236]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to my hon. Friend and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many fires there have been on (a) Upholder Class submarines and (b) other types of submarines in service with the Royal Navy since 1980 which did not arise in the course of combat. [194395]
Mr. Ingram: Centralised records of fires on RN submarines are only available from 1988. These records indicate that there were four fires on Upholder Class submarines during the in-service life of that class and 184 on other classes of submarines. The overwhelming majority of these were minor in nature. The figures include fires that arose during refit, repair and maintenance work in port as well as those that occurred on operational submarines at sea. No fires have occurred on the Upholder submarines since they were taken out of service or during reactivation prior to handover. The records do not specifically indicate which fires, if any, arose in the course of combat.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received concerning the standard of maintenance of the Upholder/Victoria Class submarines. [197908]
Mr. Ingram:
Following the agreement with the Canadian Government on the lease to buy four Upholder Class submarines, regular discussions have taken place between Ministry of Defence officials and their Canadian counterparts on a range of issues connected with the reactivation programme, which includes maintenance. We remain in close touch with
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the Canadian authorities, and are assisting them with their inquiry into the fire on board HMCS Chicoutimi on 5 October.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the original (a) estimated cost and (b) in-service delivery date was of the first three Astute class submarines; what the latest estimate is; and if he will make a statement. [197966]
Mr. Ingram: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Supplementary Manning Assistance
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions (a) battalions and (b) regiments have provided supplementary manning assistance to other battalions or regiments in the last six years; and in each case (i) when the assistance was provided, (ii) which battalions or regiments were involved, (iii) how many personnel were provided and (iv) for what period of time the assistance was provided. [197085]
Mr. Caplin: Information is not held centrally in the detail requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Surface Ships/Submarines (Refits)
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the annex to Cm 6269, how many surface ships and submarines are likely to be undergoing refit at anytime during a (a) medium/small/small, (b) medium/medium/small and (c) large scale concurrency; whether those numbers are reflected in the published tables; and if he will make a statement. [197707]
Mr. Ingram: The Annex to the Defence paper 'Delivering Security in a Changing World: Future Capabilities' (CM6269) fully reflects the requirements for ships and submarines at various levels of concurrency. The units in refit and those being prepared to replace ships and submarines deployed on enduring tasks are shown in the "factors" column of the force structure tables. Thus, at some stage in a medium/medium/small concurrency, (which is the most demanding concurrency requirement for most surface ships and submarines) up to fifteen ships and four submarines may go through a period of low operational readiness, which may include refit.
Swan Hunter
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what factors underlay the decision not to assist Swan Hunter with the overrun in budget to build the Largs Bay and Lyme Bay vessels at its Wallsend yard; and if he will make a statement. [197959]
Mr. Ingram: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Theft and Fraud
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his estimate is of the cost of theft and fraud to (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997. [191411]
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Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Tornado
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what priorities the Royal Air Force has for maintaining and improving the Tornado's strike and self-protection capabilities over the next decade; and whether there is a budget and delivery schedule for these priorities. [183407]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Troop Deployment (Northern Ireland)
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 10 February 2004, Official Report, column 959W, on the armed forces, when he will place a copy of his letter in the Library. [184448]
Mr. Caplin: I will write to my hon. Friend and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Two-can Rule
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers have been subject to disciplinary action for breaching the two-can rule in each of the past two years for which figures are available; and what sanctions have been taken (a) against those in breach of the rule and (b) officers and others responsible for its non-enforcement. [176027]
Mr. Hoon: I will write to my hon. Friend and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
UK Military Engagements
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list UK military engagements overseas, in addition to Iraq; and how many (a) Army, (b) Royal Navy and (c) RAF personnel are involved in each. [196583]
Mr. Ingram: The list of UK military personnel deployed on operations overseas and the numbers of (a) Army, (b) Navy and (c) RAF personnel who are involved in each, is as follows:
Notes:
1. The table does not include personnel serving in loan/diplomatic posts, in permanent garrisons, personnel stationed on British overseas territories or on training detachments.
2. The figures are as reported in early November 2004 and are rounded up to the nearest 5.
3. Totals may not therefore match the sum of the three individual parts.
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Warships
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when replacements for (a) HMS Leeds Castle and (b) HMS Dumbarton Castle will be ordered. [194472]
Mr. Ingram: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
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