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Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) Ribble Valley and (b) Lancashire who have lost their pensions due to firm insolvency since 1997. [24128]
Mr. Timms: I refer the hon. Member to my answer to the hon. Member for Coventry, South (Jim Cunningham) on 26 October 2005, Official Report, column 461W.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will re-open negotiations on reciprocal agreements with those countries where they are not already in place to provide for the annual up-rating in line with inflation of pensions paid to UK pensioners living in such countries. [24167]
Mr. Timms: The UK state pension is payable in all countries abroad to those who are entitled to it. It is up-rated in the normal way for UK pensioners living overseas where there is a legal requirement or a reciprocal social security agreement to do so. To bring everyone up to the current rate they would receive if they had remained in the UK, but not to pay arrears, would cost around £400 million in 200506.
The Government focus resources on helping the least well off pensioners in the UK. We have no plans to negotiate further agreements.
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in each constituency in the Yorkshire and Humber region received a state pension in each of the past three years. [24752]
Mr. Timms: The number of State Pension recipients in each constituency within the Yorkshire and Humber Government Office Region as at 31 May for the years shown is in the table.
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the construction of the military afloat reach and sustainability craft overseas; and if he will make a statement. [23051]
Mr. Ingram: The military afloat reach and sustainability project has recently entered the assessment phase and it is therefore too early to say what the final designs and specifications for these vessels might be and where the work will be carried out. We will use the assessment phase to look into the potential options, taking into account best value for money and wider industrial factors, before any decisions are made at the main gate investment point.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the in-service dates for the two future aircraft carriers remain 2012 and 2015 respectively. [23738]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 3 November 2005]: As for all projects, in-service dates (ISDs) are not set until the main investment decision. The time scale parameters for the Future Aircraft Carrier (CVF) will continue to be refined and will be confirmed following the project's main investment decision, which will be taken when we have a proper understanding of the risks, costs and contractual framework.
Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the suitability of Angola for overseas military training. [24371]
Mr. Ingram: HQ Land has made a general appreciation of a number of African countries for overseas training, including Angola. A further detailed assessment is not required at present.
Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) people from Northern Ireland and (b) citizens of the Republic of Ireland are serving in the UK armed forces. [25220]
Mr. Touhig: The number of 'British' and 'Republic of Ireland' nationals in the Armed Forces are shown as follows. Nationality figures are unavailable below United Kingdom level for the Naval Service and RAF. For Army personnel, figures for personnel declaring nationality of 'British/N. Ireland' are also shown. However, this only includes NI personnel who are recorded as such and excludes those that may be from NI, but recorded as 'British'.
Service | British | Of which recorded as British/N. Ireland | Republic of Ireland |
---|---|---|---|
Naval Service(14) | 39,010 | | 60 |
Army(15) | 100,860 | 2,005 | 210 |
Royal Air Force(16) | 50,520 | | 60 |
Mrs. Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what number of army recruits successfully completed Phase II training in each of the past four years; and what percentage that represents of their cohort recruited at Phase I entry level. [26284]
Mr. Touhig: Records do not exist in the format requested due to the variety in the length, type and location of Phase II training to which members of the same Phase I cohort group may be assigned.
The following table covers the last four financial years and shows the numbers entering training and the numbers leaving training as trained soldiers. They do not necessarily relate to the same cohort group and therefore direct comparison of the two figures could be misleading.
Financial year | Untrained intake | Outflow from untrained to trained strength |
---|---|---|
200102 | 13,510 | 8,870 |
200203 | 15,070 | 10,150 |
200304 | 13,820 | 10,390 |
200405 | 10,620 | 8,950 |
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