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23 Jan 2006 : Column 1717W—continued
Gibraltar
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future role in Gibraltar of the (a) RAF, (b) Royal Navy, (c) Army, (d) the Department's Gibraltarian workforce, (e) Navy, Army and Airforce Institution, (f) Department Hospital and (g) Department's schools. [44147]
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Mr. Ingram: There are no plans to change Gibraltar's current military role, which centres on providing a forward mounting base and other facilities to support overseas operations. This role will be kept under regular review.
An Infrastructure Service Provider (ISP) is to be introduced covering a number of facilities management functions. Introduction of the ISP will be based on a fair and open competition, which includes consideration of an in-house option. Efficiency measures will be achieved without reduction in output. These are essential to safeguard the Ministry of Defence's long-term commitment to Gibraltar.
The Navy, Army and Airforce Institution (NAAFI) facility in Gibraltar, providing a range of retail services comparable with those at other overseas stations where UK armed forces and their families are based, is located at Devil's Tower Camp. It is NAAFI's intent to open an additional facility at Europa Point in the near future.
An Integrated Healthcare Facility at Devil's Tower Camp will replace the Royal Naval Hospital (RNH) and the Joint Medical Centre and Dental Unit (JMDU). This project is on schedule to open in November 2007, at which point the RNH and JMDU sites will be handed over to the Government of Gibraltar.
Improvements are being made to the internal condition of St. Christopher School, and a programme is under way to develop management at the school.
QinetiQ
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy to seek parliamentary approval before sale of the 'golden share' in QinetiQ and if he will make a statement. [43869]
John Reid: The Special (or Golden) Share that MOD presently holds in QinetiQ will be retained after the flotation of the company, to protect UK defence and security interests, as currently. There are no plans to relinquish the Special Share, even after any subsequent sell-down of the remainder of the Government's shareholding in QinetiQ, although this will be kept under review. If in the future there were any such plans, Ministers would anticipate informing Parliament.
RAF Leeming
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future of RAF Leeming. [44499]
Mr. Ingram: As stated in my written ministerial statement of 17 January 2006, Official Report, column 25WS, I have decided, subject to trade unions consultation, that the RAF communications hub will be formed at RAF Leeming. Thismeans that communications personnel would move from RAF Sealand to RAF Leeming by April 2006. Communications personnel from RAF Brize Norton and RAF High Wycombe would move to RAF Leeming in 2007.
Royal Ordnance
Mr. Hoyle:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the future of security
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of supply of (a) boxer caps, (b) initiators and (c) detonators; and which countries he expects to supply his Department via BAE Systems contracts if Royal Ordnance Chorley is closed. [43904]
Mr. Ingram: BAE Systems Land Systems will remain responsible for the security of supply of products previously manufactured at Chorley. Decisions on alternate sources are a commercial matter for the company.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which suppliers to his Department are being considered to replace Royal Ordnance Chorley. [43617]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 19 January 2006]: BAE Systems Land Systems will remain responsible for the security of supply of products previously manufactured at Chorley. Decisions on alternate sources are a commercial matter for the company.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment the Munitions Corporate Business Unit has made of the proposed cessation of manufacturing at Royal Ordnance Chorley. [43619]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 19 January 2006]: The Ministry of Defence are fully engaged with BAES Land Systems and a joint team has been formed to oversee the cessation of manufacturing. We remain confident that risks are being effectively managed and the company's plans are realistic and workable.
Territorial Army
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to extend the three-year period for a 12-months mobilisation to five years for Territorial Army personnel. [43685]
Mr. Touhig: There are no plans to make any orders under the Reserve Forces Act 1996 to extend the obligatory periods of mobilised service set out in that Act. It is our policy intention that reservists should only be mobilised compulsorily for a total of up to one year in any five except where no viable alternative exists.
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what length of time Territorial Army personnel have to be on continuous overseas duty before they are exempted from income tax. [43673]
Mr. Touhig: Territorial Army personnel, like all Crown Servants, are not exempt from paying income tax when they are on overseas duty.
Training and Evaluation Capabilities
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the next routine five-yearly review of long-term partnership agreements on capabilities in training and evaluation will take place. [44173]
Mr. Ingram:
The first quinquennial review of the Long Term Partnering Agreement between the Ministry of Defence and QinetiQ for the provision of Test, Evaluation and Training Services is due to complete by April 2008. Initial planning and scoping of the necessary workstreams is already under way.
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Veterans' Badges
Mr. Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence who is eligible to apply for the UK armed forces veterans' badge. [44490]
Mr. Touhig: The armed forces veterans' badge will be issued to all service veterans. To cope with demand, eligibility to apply for the badge has been extended to veterans in tranches. Currently those eligible to apply include men and women who served in HM armed forces up to and including 31 December 1954.
Merchant seamen, Polish forces under United Kingdom command, the Cyprus Regiment and the Home Guard are also eligible to receive the badge. Widow(ers) whose spouse died from an injury or illness attributable to their service and who are in receipt of a war widow(ers) pension are also eligible to apply for the armed forces veteran's badge.
For a one-year trial period from February 2005, those currently leaving the armed forces have also been eligible. This arrangement will be reviewed shortly.
TRANSPORT
A418/A413
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) if he will make a statement on the timetable for the (a) A418 Wing bypass and (b) A413 Wendover Road corridor improvements; [43307]
(2) if he will make a statement on his policy on a bypass for Bierton in Buckinghamshire. [43309]
Ms Buck: These relate to improvements on local roads, and as such are matters for Buckinghamshire county council to bring forward within their local transport plan.
Local road schemes costing more than £5 million are subject to prioritisation within the regional funding allocation, on the basis of advice from the region.
Administration Costs
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the administrative costs were of each agency for which he has responsibility in the last year for which figures are available; what the total of such costs was in that year; and whether the costs are regarded for the purposes of public expenditure statistical analyses as (a) identifiable and (b) non-identifiable. [39846]
Ms Buck: The total administrative costs reported by each agency of the Department for 2004–05 are set out in the following table.
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Administrative costs include staff, accommodation and other operating costs, including depreciation and other non-cash charges where appropriate. Fuller information on the income and expenditure of each agency is published in its Annual Report and Accounts, which is available in the Library of the House.
With the exception of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), net expenditure of the agencies is 'identifiable' for the purposes of the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA) published by the Treasury. MCA net expenditure is deemed to be non-identifiable and is considered to benefit the UK as a whole.
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