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19 Jul 2005 : Column 1539W—continued
RAF Menwith Hill
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the financial agreement in place between the MOD Police Agency and the US authorities at RAF Menwith Hill for services rendered. [1298]
Mr. Ingram: I am placing the information requested in the Library of the House.
Royal Navy (Personnel)
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of staff have been employed in the Royal Navy for each year since 1980–81; and if he will make a statement. [12280]
Mr. Touhig: Trained naval services strength (including Royal Marines) on 1 April each year since 1980 are given in the following table:
(1) UK Regulars includes nursing services and excludes full-time reserve services (FTRS) and mobilised reservists.
(2) Only available rounded to nearest 100. The rest of the figures are rounded to the nearest 10. When rounding to 10, numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to the nearest 20 to avoid systematic bias.
19 Jul 2005 : Column 1540W
Royal Ordnance Factory
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the value is of contracts to be produced at Chorley Royal Ordnance Factory in 2005–06. [11647]
Mr. Ingram: Chorley Royal Ordnance Factory is part of BAE Systems Land Systems. The level and value of production activity at Chorley are commercial matters for BAE Systems.
School Fees
Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State forDefence how much was spent by his Department onschool fees in each of the last three years; who is entitled to claim the cost of fees; what the maximum amount payable per claimant is; and if he will make a statement. [11547]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 18 July 2005]: The net sum paid annually in respect of service education allowances for boarding and day school fees by the Ministry of Defence in each of the past three years is shown in the table:
| £ | |
|---|---|
| 2002–03 | 69,488,884.11 |
| 2003–04 | 81,650,940.11 |
| 2004–05 | 91,078,265.42 |
In addition to the above amounts, service education allowances are subject to income tax and national insurance contributions (NIC) when paid to service personnel based in the UK. These are paid by the MOD under grossing up arrangements through a PAYE settlement agreement (PSA). The income tax and NIC PSA payment amounts are not held centrally and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Service education allowances are available to all regular service personnel, provided they meet the eligibility criteria. In order to claim any of the service education allowances, the service claimant must fully accept the overriding principle that their family will accompany them on each posting, whether in the United Kingdom or overseas.
There are a range of service education allowances available, depending on whether the child is attending a boarding or day school, as a junior or senior pupil and whether they have a special educational need. The various maximum annual rates of service education allowance per child from 2002 onwards are shown in the table.
19 Jul 2005 : Column 1541W
Second World War Anniversary Ceremonies
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the Ministers in each Department who were present in an official capacity at ceremonies to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War; and if he will make a statement. [12737]
Mr. Touhig: On National Commemoration Day, Sunday 10 July, the Prime Minister attended the three events organised by the Ministry of Defence in London, at Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and Horse Guards Parade. He was accompanied by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence. I also attended as the Minister for Veterans. In addition, my right hon. Friend the Minister for the armed forces attended commemorative events in Edinburgh and the noble Lord, the Minister for Defence Procurement attended a commemorative event at the National Memorial Arboretum, near Lichfield, Staffordshire.
Other Departmental Ministers were invited to attend the events in London and I am sure others will have attended similar events which took place throughout the country. However, we do not have a definitive list of Ministers who attended such events in an official capacity.
Sickness Absence
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many days the Department has lost due to sickness in the past five years for which figures are available. [11470]
Mr. Touhig: The following tables show the numbers of days' sickness absence for non-industrial and skill-zone (former industrial) civil servants in the Ministry of Defence since 1999.
Notes:
1. Excludes MOD staff in Trading Fund Agencies and Royal Fleet Auxiliaries.
2. Sickness absence days are based on full-time equivalent (FTE) working days lost. For example, if a part-time employee (working 50 per cent. full-time hours) is sick for seven calendar days, this is five working days lost and 2.5 FTE working days lost.
3. Absences with unreasonably long values have been edited and some logical inconsistencies corrected.
4. There is no sickness absence information for skill-zone staff available for 2000 or for non- industrial for 2001, for data quality reasons.
19 Jul 2005 : Column 1542W
Surface Fleet
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 28 June 2005, Official Report, column 1400W, on the surface fleet, if he will identify each of the 25 destroyers and frigates to which reference is made in Cm 6269 (page 18); and if he will make a statement. [9614]
Mr. Ingram: The destroyers and frigates that are currently in-service with the RN are as follows:
As stated in Cm 6269, we have a requirement for eight Type 45 destroyers. The capability provided by the Type 45s will progressively succeed the capability provided by the Type 42 destroyers from 2009.
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