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14 Dec 2004 : Column 1029W—continued
Departmental Finance
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence by how much his Department's capital budget was underspent in financial year 2003–04. [203653]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 9 December 2004]: Final outturn against the Ministry of Defence's 2003–04 Capital Departmental Expenditure Limit for RfR (Request for resources) (provision of defence capability) is set out at page 35 of the MOD's Annual Report and Accounts (HC 1080). This shows an outturn of £5,648 million against a DEL of £6,088 million; an underspend of £440 million.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes to his Department's depreciation figures occurred between the publication of the 2004 Budget (HC 701, 2003–04) and the pre-Budget report (CM 6408, 2004–05); and if he will make a statement. [203654]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 9 December 2004]: As explained at paragraph 64 of the Ministry of Defence's Annual Report and Accounts (HC 1080) the MOD's final asset depreciation figures for 2003–04 were lower than expected because the Quinquennial Review of Fixed Assets necessary under Modified Historic Cost Accounting and carried out towards the end of the financial year resulted in fewer downward valuations, and therefore smaller accelerated depreciated costs, than had been anticipated.
Departmental Telephones
Mr. Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures he has taken to ensure that telephones in his Department are not used by staff for making unauthorised personal calls to international numbers. [201110]
Mr. Caplin: Direct dial access to international civil numbers is granted only to those staff who require it for the course of their official duties.
Environmental Tectonics
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what consultations his Department has had with Environmental Tectonics Corporation regarding that company's involvement in the Authentic Tactical Flight Simulator project; [202982]
(2) what part human centrifuge technology will play in the proposed Authentic Tactical Flight Simulator project; and what he estimates the cost of this project to be. [202985]
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Mr. Ingram: Although Environmental Tectonics Corporation has approached the Ministry of Defence to actively market a Tactical Flight Simulator there have been no consultations with the company on this product and none are planned.
Future Surface Combatant
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what effect the coherency package for British shipyards has had on the decision to reassess the requirement for the Future Surface Combatant. [203292]
Mr. Ingram: The Future Surface Combatant (FSC) project is being reviewed together with all other military maritime programmes as part of the Maritime Coherence study, and a range of options is being considered. The project is, in any case, still in its concept phase. As such no decisions have yet been taken about the timescale for delivering the FSC capability, nor about the platform solution.
Peacekeeping
Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list he countries in which British peacekeeping forces are deployed; and how many British peacekeeping forces were employed in peacekeeping operations on the latest date for which figures are available. [203608]
Mr. Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 18 November 2004, Official Report, column 1846W.
Personnel Survey
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library the (a) questions asked and (b) responses given to the seventh serving personnel survey for the Army conducted in June. [204029]
Mr. Caplin: I can confirm that copies of the questions asked in the seventh Army Serving Personnel survey, and the responses given, will be placed in the Library of the House in the new year.
QinetiQ
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what controls govern the intellectual property rights developed by the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency following its transfer to QinetiQ, with particular reference to confidentiality commitments placed on QinetiQ staff who leave its employ. [202765]
Mr. Ingram: With a few exceptions, intellectual property rights generated within those parts of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency that were transferred to QinetiQ belong to QinetiQ. MOD retains the right to use this intellectual property free of charge for defence purposes. A procedure is in place that requires QinetiQ to seek MOD pre-clearance to any proposal for the exploitation of any sensitive technology.
Employees of any organisation are free to pursue their careers elsewhere, but have an obligation not to use or disclose confidential information belonging to their ex-employer. In this regard, ex-employees of QinetiQ are no different from ex-employees of any other organisation. Many organisations, including QinetiQ, supplement the
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common law position with specific obligations in their terms and conditions of employment. It is also understood that QinetiQ reminds employees of their obligations to maintain confidentiality on leaving QinetiQ's employment and seeks to enforce these obligations if it appears necessary to do so.
The Official Secrets Act also applies to employees of QinetiQ. Employees leaving QinetiQ are reminded of their obligations under the Act.
Research and Development
Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many research and development procurement opportunities were disseminated by his Department to small and medium-sized enterprises registered through the Small Business Research Initiative web portal in each year since 2001–02, including figures for 2004–05 to date; and what the total value of the opportunities was in each case. [201283]
Mr. Ingram: The Defence Suppliers Service acts as a focal point within the Ministry of Defence to provide advice and guidance to companies interested in becoming defence suppliers, either directly or indirectly. They also provide a variety of access media to benefit small and medium sized enterprises comprising helpdesk facility, events and seminars, and web portals; the Small Business Research Initiative web portal is one of these. However, we do not hold centrally the information on dissemination of information through any particular means.
Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the expenditure was by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible on research and development work by organisations other than university departments, Government-funded research establishments or private sector companies in each year since 2001–02. [201278]
Mr. Ingram: The following table shows total expenditure on R and D activity by (a) MOD with its trading fund agencies (which have been taken not to be Government funded research establishments) and (b) expenditure on R and D activity by the trading fund agencies themselves other than that undertaken by university departments, Government funded research establishments or private sector companies. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published in 2005 by the Office for National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development". The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its trading fund agencies (ie ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
(7) Departmental expenditure figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million, sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.
(8) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) (about a quarter of DERA) staying as a trading fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.
(9) Includes expenditure with Industrial Research Associations and small amounts with "others", ie non-profit institutions (such as charities) and individuals performing research but not as a business.
(10) Expenditure by the Department with Industrial Research Associations and "others" is small and has been lost in the roundings.
(3)
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Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure on research and development was made by each agency sponsored by his Department in each year since 2001–02; and what percentage this represented of that agency's total expenditure in each year. [201323]
Mr. Ingram: The following tables show total expenditure on external R and D contract activity by MOD agencies who are known to have spent moneys on R and D tasks, and the percentage that this represents in terms of total agency annual turnover. Agencies have been taken as referring to Trading Fund Agencies only. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published in 2005 by the Office for National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development".
(11) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (about a quarter of DERA) staying as a Trading Fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.
(12) Sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest one hundred thousand pounds.
(13) For UKHO the expenditure is expressed as a percentage of total operating expenditure excluding interest.
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(14) Sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest one hundred thousand pounds.
(15) For UKHO the expenditure is expressed as a percentage of total operating expenditure excluding interest.
Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was spent by his Department on research and development in each year since 2001–02; and what percentage of total Departmental expenditure this represented in each year. [201324]
Mr. Ingram: The following table shows total Ministry of Defence expenditure on R and D activity for the last three financial years for which data are available. Figures are inclusive of non-recoverable VAT and presented in £ millions. Because of transitional arrangements with the introduction of Resource Accounting and Budgeting, the figures from the years 2001–02 and 2002–03 are not expressed as a percentage of "Defence Spending". Figures for 2001–02 and 2002–03 are expressed as a percentage of the Net Cash Requirement (NCR). The Net Cash Requirement (NCR) is the actual money that MOD requests from the Government in order to fund its activities. The NCR takes account of movements in working capital levels (debtors, creditors, stock) while excluding all non-cash costs.
| MOD Departmental Research and Development expenditure (£ million) | Percentage of Defence spending | |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 2,057 | 8 |
| 2002–03 | 2,734 | 10 |
| 2003–04 | 2,677 | 9 |
Defence Spending is defined as the sum of the resource and capital budgets, net of depreciation and impairments.
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The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its Trading Fund Agencies (i.e. ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure has been made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects undertaken by overseas Government laboratories or research establishments, including collaborative Government-funded laboratories and research establishments in each year since 2001–02. [201326]
Mr. Ingram: The Ministry of Defence welcomes collaboration with foreign partners where this will bring benefits to the United Kingdom. In these cases MOD seeks to align UK activities and those of other Governments for mutual benefit, rather than funding overseas bodies that conduct research. The exact breakdown of the total activity is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, the central expenditure for facilitating international research collaboration over the period requested is provided in the following table. The figures for 2004–05 represent allocation rather than expenditure.
| Financial year | Expenditure |
|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 5.4 |
| 2002–03 | 6.2 |
| 2003–04 | 6.2 |
| 2004–05 | (16)6.3 |
(16) Allocation
Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects undertaken by university departments and research centres in the UK in each year since 2001–02. [201331]
Mr. Ingram: The following table shows total expenditure on R and D activity for (a) Ministry of Defence and (b) for MOD Trading Fund agencies with universities and/or research centres. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published by the Office of National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development" in 2005. The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its Trading Fund Agencies (i.e. ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
(17) Departmental expenditure figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million. Sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.
(18) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (about a quarter of DERA) staying as a Trading Fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.
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Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects undertaken by private sector companies in each year since 2001–02. [201334]
Mr. Ingram: The following table shows total expenditure on R and D activity for (a) MOD and (b) MOD agencies which have been undertaken by private sector companies. This has been presented for the last two financial years for which data are available. Figures for 2003–04 will be published in 2005 by the Office of National Statistics in "Government Expenditure on Research and Development". The term "Department" has been interpreted as the MOD not including its Trading Fund Agencies (i.e. ABRO, DARA, Met Office, DSTL and Hydrographic Office). This aligns with the MOD Annual Report and Accounts.
(19) Departmental expenditure figures have been rounded to the nearest £ million, sums spent by trading fund agencies have been rounded to the nearest £100,000.
(20) On 1 July 2001 DERA was split into two organisations: the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) (about a quarter of DERAP) staying as a Trading Fund within MOD, and QinetiQ, the remainder, becoming a private (extramural) company.
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Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was made by (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which his Department is responsible for research and development projects by companies with headquarters (i) in the UK, (ii) in other EU member states and (iii) outside the EU in each year since 2001–02. [201336]
Mr. Ingram: A breakdown of research and development expenditure in this way is not held centrally. Such information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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