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UN Environment Programme

Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the UK's financial contribution to the UN Environment Programme is for (a) 2004–05 and (b) 2005–06; and if she will make a statement. [207472]

Mr. Morley: The UK contribution to UNEP for 2004 was £4.2 million.

No request has yet been received for payment in 2005. The UK expects to match last year's level of £4.2 million, in line with UNEP's voluntary Indicative Scale of Contributions.

Waste

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of commercial and industrial waste was biodegradable in the last period for which figures are available. [206790]

Mr. Morley: Estimates from the 1998–99 Environment Agency survey suggest that about 44 per cent. of industrial and commercial waste is paper, card or food. A
 
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further 22 per cent. is mixed waste of which an unknown proportion is biodegradable. Publication of more up to date survey data should take place later in the year.

World Conservation Monitoring Centre

Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the financial position of the World Conservation Monitoring Centre in Cambridge; and if she will make a statement. [207469]

Mr. Morley: The UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) has experienced short term financial difficulties caused by a combination of factors, including exchange rate fluctuations between the US dollar and sterling and changes in the way the Centre's core funding is provided.

Defra officials are in discussion with UNEP, WCMC Trustees and staff of the Centre to explore ways to secure its short and long-term future.

Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which of her Department's publications have drawn on information produced by the World Conservation Monitoring Centre at Cambridge; and if she will make a statement. [207470]

Mr. Morley: Work carried out by the UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) is used by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to inform and support discussions in key environment fora such as the Convention on Biological Diversity. In particular, the Centre has produced papers, to help focus international discussions on the implementation of the biodiversity target adopted at the World Summit on Sustainable Development to achieve a significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010. This included documentation for an international meeting in London in May 2003—'2010—The Biodiversity Challenge'.

The UK's delivery plan on biodiversity 'Beyond Johannesburg: Delivering our International Biodiversity Commitments', published by Defra in May 2004, uses statistics on biodiversity loss produced by UNEP-WCMC.

Defra reports to the Convention on International Trade on Endangered Species (CITES) and other international species conservation conventions also include much information that has been drawn from UNEP-WCMC's databases.

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, to which the UK Government has contributed, draws upon significant amounts of published work by UNEP-WCMC.

Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when (a) she and (b) her officials last met the staff of the World Conservation Monitoring Centre at Cambridge; and what was discussed. [207471]

Mr. Morley: I met Dr. Klaus Toepfer, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), on 6 January 2005 and discussed the UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre
 
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(UNEP-WCMC) amongst other issues. Dr. Toepfer and I expressed our commitment to securing the short and long term future of the centre.

Defra officials are also in frequent contact with staff and management of the Centre on a host of biodiversity issues.

DEFENCE

Army Establishment

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when his Department expects to produce the establishment figure for the next three years for the (a) Signals, (b) Engineers, (c) Logistics and (d) Intelligence Corps. [208302]

Mr. Ingram: The detailed implications for the establishments of all the arms and services of the Army are being worked through now as we move forward with the reorganisation of the Army. We anticipate that establishment figures will be finalised in the next few months.
 
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Army Recruitment

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people were recruited into the Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire regiments in each of the last five years; and how that affected establishment in each case. [204908]

Mr. Caplin: Individual regiments are not allocated on recruitment, but during or on completion of training. Therefore the information in the following tables refers only to the trained strength of the Royal Gloucestershire Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment. The numbers recruited into the regiment are represented in terms of gains to the trained strength of the regiment.
Gains to the trained strength of The Royal Gloucestershire Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment (RGBW)

Financial year	Officers	Soldiers	Total
1999–2000	—	50	50
2000–01	—	80	80
2001–02	10	70	80
2002–03	10	60	60
2003–04	—	80	80

Trained strength of The Royal Gloucestershire Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment (RGBW)

		Infantry personnel with RGBW capbadge		Other (non-RGBW)		Total
As at 1 April	Serving in:	Officer	Soldier	Officer	Soldier	Officer	Soldier	Total
1999	RGBW Regiment	30	450	—	70	30	520	550
	Not serving with the Regiment	60	90	—	—	60	90	140
	Total	80	530	—	70	90	610	690
2000	RGBW Regiment	30	400	—	60	30	460	490
	Not serving with the Regiment	50	80	—	—	50	80	140
	Total	80	480	—	60	80	540	630
2001	RGBW Regiment	30	440	—	90	30	540	570
	Not serving with the Regiment	50	80	—	—	50	80	130
	Total	80	520	—	90	80	610	690
2002	RGBW Regiment	30	460	—	70	40	520	560
	Not serving with the Regiment	50	70	—	—	50	70	120
	Total	80	530	—	70	80	600	680
2003	RGBW Regiment	30	450	10	70	40	520	550
	Not serving with the Regiment	50	80	—	—	50	80	130
	Total	80	530	10	70	90	590	680
2004	RGBW Regiment	30	480	—	80	40	560	600
	Not serving with the Regiment	50	60	—	—	50	60	110
	Total	80	540	—	80	80	620	710

Note:
Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and therefore totals may not always equal the sum of the parts.

Body Armour

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many sets of body armour were issued by the Army between 1989 and the end of January; to which units they were issued; how many men were serving in each of those units at the end of January; and if he will make a statement. [207051]

Mr. Ingram: I appreciate that the hon. Member has previously raised questions regarding the issue of body armour to armed forces personnel and I would refer him to the data for the period 1992–2003 that was published by the House of Commons Defence Committee on 8 June 2004 (HC 635), as part of the Government's response to its 'Lessons of Iraq' inquiry. Information prior to 1992 is unavailable. Additional issues data for 2004 to the end of January 2005 can be provided if required.

Details of the units to which issues have been made since 1992 and the number of personnel serving in those units is not held centrally, may be incomplete and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Following lessons learned on Op Telic, a policy that guarantees the issue of body armour to personnel has now been endorsed and is currently being implemented. All Royal Marine, Army and Royal Air Force personnel are to be provided with combat body armour as an item of personal equipment. This is being undertaken in order of priority, commencing with personnel in operationally-liable units. The plates which are added to
 
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form enhanced combat body armour (ECBA) will be held centrally and issued to formations and units in accordance with readiness states, when required prior to deployment on overseas operations. Separate arrangements are in place to guarantee that Royal Navy, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, the Reserves and civilian personnel in support of military operations overseas are also provided with ECBA prior to deployment.

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