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2 Dec 2005 : Column 821W—continued

Joint Strike Fighter

Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his latest estimate is of when the Joint Strike Fighter will be operative; and what the cost of the Joint Strike Fighter will be. [32455]

Mr. Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to my answers of 23 November 2005, Official Report, column 2054W, to the hon. Member for New Forest, East (Dr. Lewis). The UK's procurement cost is likely to be up to £10billion, depending on the eventual number of aircraft required. In service support costs will be determined by whatever through life support strategy we decide to adopt.

Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on progress on introducing the joint strike fighter. [32559]

Mr. Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 21 November 2005, Official Report, column 567W, and 26 October 2005, Official Report, column 378W, to the hon. Members for Romford (Andrew Rosindell) and Congleton (Ann Winterton) respectively.
 
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Landing Ships Dock (Auxiliary)

Mr. Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the total value is of the computer systems for the four Alternative Landing Ships Logistic which are under construction; [32043]

(2) what proportion of the contract value of the Alternative Landing Ships Logistic being built by Swan Hunters has been placed with companies in the north east; and if he will list the (a) United Kingdom and (b) overseas subcontractors that have received orders of £500,000 and above; [32044]

(3) from which country the computer systems for the four Alternative Landing Ships Logistic which are under construction were procured. [32052]

Mr. Ingram: The Ministry of Defence contractual relationship is with Swan Hunter, the Lead Yard Supplier for the Landing Ship Dock (Auxiliary) programme and therefore its arrangements with sub-contractors are a matter for the company.

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Defence Procurement Agency personnel are working on the Landing Ships Dock (Auxiliary) at the Swan Hunter yard; and in what roles. [32713]

Mr. Ingram: The Defence Procurement Agency employs a team of seven site surveillance engineers within the Swan Hunter shipyard which is in line with the Department's normal approach to ship build contracts. The team monitors the company's progress and performance in the build of each ship, including fabrication and commissioning activities and ensuring the vessels comply with the statutory authorities and classification societies standards.

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has asked BAE Systems to second personnel to work on the Landing Ships Dock (Auxiliary) at the Swan Hunter yard. [32714]

Mr. Ingram: The secondment of BAE Systems personnel to work on the Landing Ship Dock (Auxiliary) Project was a commercial arrangement between BAE Systems and Swan Hunter.

Lynx Helicopters

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the current Lynx fleet he expects to be used as donors for the Future Lynx project; and when he expects this process to begin. [32699]

Mr. Ingram: The Future Lynx is our preferred procurement option to meet the Surface Combatant Maritime Rotorcraft and Battlefield Reconnaissance Helicopter requirements. This is, however, subject to continuing negotiations with the company, and the main investment decision has not yet been taken. If we decide to proceed with Future Lynx, the intention is that parts would be removed from existing Lynx helicopters as they are progressively withdrawn from service, but until we can assess the condition of the parts it is not possible to say how many will be used.
 
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Neuron Programme

Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions his Department has had with its French counterpart on the Neuron programme; and whether it is his policy that the United Kingdom will participate in the programme. [32710]

Mr. Ingram: There have been no formal discussions with France about Neuron. It is not our policy to join the Neuron programme.

Noise-induced Hearing Loss

Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department keeps a record of hearing tests carried out on service and ex-service personnel and their results. [26859]

Mr. Touhig [holding answer 10 November 2005]: Records of hearing tests and their results are held as part of an individual's personal medical record. The medical records of serving personnel are held at their unit medical centre, whereas the medical records of individuals who have left the services are held by each service at individual central locations. The Ministry of Defence does not, however, hold records of hearing tests which take place after an individual has left the services. The MOD does not hold a central database of hearing test results.

Postal Services

Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the subsidised mail allowance for service personnel serving abroad; and what is the average time taken to deliver mail to troops serving in Iraq. [32636]

Mr. Ingram: Postcards, letters and small packets, up to a maximum weight of 2 kg, can be sent by airmail to any member of HM forces or otherwise entitled persons serving abroad, at a concessionary rate, which is subsidised by the Ministry of Defence. For example, a 2kg packet can be sent by airmail to a British forces post office address at a cost of £7.16, whereas to send the same packet by the standard Royal Mail airmail tariff to a civilian address in Germany would cost £10.59, and, to a civilian address in world zone 1 (i.e. outside Europe) would cost £37.31.

BFPO mail for Iraq is normally despatched six times per week by RAF aircraft. Typically, a letter posted in the United Kingdom could take one to two days to reach the BFPO sorting office in London, and a further two days to reach the British forces post office deployed in Iraq. Final receipt by the addressee is of course dependent on the operational activities of the addressee's unit, and the difficulty of effecting delivery from the forces post office, via the addressee's unit, to the named individual.

RAF Bases

Mr. Randall: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) whether the number of military aircraft using RAF Northolt in a year is restricted; [33055]
 
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(2) pursuant to the answer of 21 October 2005, Official Report, column 1250W, on RAF Northolt, how many (a) civil and (b) military aircraft landed and departed from RAF Northolt outside the hours of 8.00 am to 10.00 pm in (i) 2002, (ii) 2003 and (iii) 2004; [33273]

(3) pursuant to the answer of 21 October 2005, Official Report, column 1250W, on RAF Northolt, what process is used to authorise increases in the number of civilian aircraft that land and take off from RAF Northolt; who authorises such increases; and whether an increase has been authorised for 2006. [33277]

Mr. Ingram: Authority for the number of civil commercial aircraft movements at RAF Northolt rests with the Ministry of Defence. Flying activity at RAF Northolt is restricted to the minimum required to meet operational and training requirements.

Information on the number of civil and military aircraft that have landed and departed outside the hours of 8.00 am and 10.00 pm is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

There is no formal process for increasing the number of civil commercial aircraft movements at RAF Northolt. However, the hon. Member was informed by my right hon. Friend the then Minister of State for the Armed Forces (John Reid), on 30 June 1998, Official Report, columns 272–73, that any changes to the number of civil commercial aircraft movements would be subject to full consultation with the local authority and interested parties.

No increase in the number of civil commercial flights at Northolt in 2006 has been authorised.

Reservists

Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Defencehow many reservists in the armed forces are teachers. [33143]

Mr. Touhig: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

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