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6 Feb 2006 : Column 819W—continued
Citizens Juries
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions his Department consulted citizens' juries on departmental policies in the last five years; in how many of those consultations the recommendations of the citizens' jury differed from existing departmental policy; and on how many occasions departmental policy was changed to reflect the recommendations of the citizens' jury. [46244]
Mr. Touhig: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Correspondence
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 14 December 2005, Official Report, column 2038W, on departmental staff (relocation), when he will write to the hon. Member for Twickenham. [49159]
Mr. Touhig: I replied to the hon. Member on Thursday 2 February 2006 and placed a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.
Mr. Michael Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he will reply to the letter of 21 September 2005 from the hon. Member for Worcester, reference 04427/2005, concerning Mr. Robert Smith and military medals for action in the Yemen. [49229]
Mr. Touhig:
As was explained in my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces' letter of 20 August 2005 (reference: D/US of S/DT 35 51/05/A), although British Nationals were involved in military activities on behalf of the Royalist Government of Yemen in the mid-1960s, they were not acting as members of the British Army. Thus the Ministry of Defence was not responsible for the issue raised in Mr. Smith's latest letter. I wrote to the hon. Member on 4 February to explain in more detail the MOD's position regarding this case.
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Defence Training
John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will consider inviting the National Audit Office to oversee the bid evaluation process for the Defence Training Review Transformation Programme. [48726]
Mr. Touhig: The Defence Training Review (DTR) Programme already has a senior independent auditor assigned to oversee the evaluation process. I have no doubt, however, that the National Audit Office will keep a watching brief on the DTR Programme as part of its regular business.
Defensive Air Suite
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many C2 aircraft in the Defensive Air Suite were (a) operational and (b) unserviceable on 31 January. [49117]
Mr. Ingram: On 31 January 2006 two RAF Tristar C2 passenger aircraft were available for operations. A third aircraft was undergoing scheduled maintenance. All three aircraft are fitted with a defensive aid suite and flight deck armour.
Departmental Assets
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the items of his Department's property worth over £100 that have been reported as (a) lost and (b) broken in the last 12 months. [47686]
Mr. Touhig: The Ministry of Defence discloses losses, in accordance with Government Accounting 2000, Chapter 18, within its Annual Report and Accounts. A copy for 2004–05 has been placed in the Library of the House.
The Committee of Public Accounts has agreed a threshold of £100,000 for the detailed reporting of losses in 2004–05. All losses below this threshold are reported within the Annual Report and Accounts, but only as an aggregated number of cases and total value. The MOD only reports losses in exceptional cases during the financial year and, therefore, data are not yet available for FY 2005–06.
For the purpose of responding to this question, it has been assumed that the term property relates to equipment and stores.
Property which is lost is defined as a stores loss and is reported in the Annual Report and Accounts by the following categories:
For 2004–05, there were a total of 504 Bl and 8,304 B2 stores loss cases, i.e. an overall total of 8,808 stores losses. Eight were above the £100,000 reporting threshold and are disclosed in detail in Note 29 to the Departmental Annual Report and Accounts 2004–05.
Detailed listings of stores lost below £100,000 are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Breakages are accounted for either as a stores loss written off, as above, or as incurred through normal wear and tear. The latter are recorded at unit level in
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accordance with stores accounting regulations, but there is no requirement for formal disclosure within the Annual Report and Accounts. Details of breakages through normal wear and tear are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Depression/Post-traumatic Stress Disorder
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria are applied when assessing whether service personnel suffering from (a) clinical depression and (b) post-traumatic stress disorder should (i) continue to be employed on peace-time duties and (ii) be deployed on active service. [48027]
Mr. Touhig: All instances of service personnel who are diagnosed as suffering from a mental health condition are assessed on a case-by-case basis, with input from the appropriate health professionals, including a consultant psychiatrist where necessary. In making a decision as to their deployability, all relevant factors will be taken into account, including the severity of the symptoms, the location and duration of the deployment, and the nature of the duties to be carried out. As a result of this process the individual may be medically downgraded and this in turn may prevent them from deploying on a particular operation or carrying out their normal duties in the United Kingdom.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements are made to ensure that service personnel on deployments have access to the medication required to manage (a) clinical depression and (b) post-traumatic stress disorder. [48028]
Mr. Touhig: Where an individual is suffering from clinical depression which is being effectively controlled by long-term medication, it is their personal responsibility to ensure that they deploy with sufficient quantities to last for the duration of their deployment. There are systems in place in theatre to re-supply patients who require further supplies of medication. However, sufficient stocks may not necessarily be held in theatre, and it is therefore incumbent on the individual to notify the deployed medical staff of their requirements in sufficient time for further supplies to be obtained.
The treatment of post traumatic stress disorder is not primarily drugs-based. Non-pharmacological intervention is the mainstay of treatment for this condition, and personnel deployed on Operation TELIC have access to mental health professionals at Shaibah Logistics base.
Executive Agencies
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) targets, (b) advice and (c) guidance his Department has given to executive agencies that fall under the remit of his Department on the reorganisation of their administrative functions on a regional basis; and if he will make a statement. [41647]
Mr. Touhig:
Agency key targets are set annually and agreed with the Department and Ministers, taking into account wider government objectives and priorities. The Department has set no specific targets for the executive agencies for reorganisation of their administrative functions on a regional basis. Where potential reorganisation is being considered, advice and guidance
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on regional aspects are provided in line with the Ministry of Defence's commitment under the Lyons Review.
Freedom of Information Act
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 his Department received in the first year of its operation. [47736]
Mr. Touhig: The number of requests under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI) received by the Ministry of Defence in the first three quarters of 2005 was:
| Number | |
|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | 1,843 |
| Quarter 2 | 1,039 |
| Quarter 3 | 851 |
The Department for Constitutional Affairs is committed to publishing quarterly information about departmental performance under FOI, including the volume and outcomes of requests. The bulletin for the third quarter can be found on the DCA website at http://www.foi.gov.uk/statsjul-sep05.htm and in the Library of the House. Statistics for the fourth quarter and an annual report will be published in March.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is on charging for information requested under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [47737]
Mr. Touhig: The Ministry of Defence operates in accordance with the Fees Regulations made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, which stipulate that requests should be processed without charge unless the effort involved exceeds the appropriate limit of £600.
Requests whose actual or estimated costs exceed the appropriate limit are not normally processed and there is accordingly no reason to charge for information. In this circumstance the MOD will assist the applicant to focus the scope of the request to bring it within the £600 threshold.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been received by his Department in fees for the provision of information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in its first year of operation. [47738]
Mr. Touhig: No fees were collected by the Ministry of Defence for providing information in response to requests for information in the first year of the Act's operation.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his Department's policy is on the time taken to respond to requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [47739]
Mr. Touhig:
The Ministry of Defence aims to reply to all requests for information promptly and not later than 20 working days following the receipt of the request unless more time is required to consider the application of a qualified exemption or unless more time is allowed under the provisions of Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 3364.
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Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 were refused by his Department in its first year of the Act's operation. [47740]
Mr. Touhig: The number of requests where information was either partially or fully withheld (and where it was granted in full) during the first three quarters of 2005 were:
| Quarter 1 | Quarter 2 | Quarter 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partially withheld | 127 | 90 | 58 |
| Fully withheld | 172 | 96 | 97 |
| Granted in full | 1,146 | 643 | 506 |
The Department for Constitutional Affairs is committed to publishing quarterly information about departmental performance under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI), including the volume and outcomes of requests. The bulletin for the third quarter can be found on the DCA website at http://www.foi.gov.uk/statsjul-sep05.htm and in the Library of the House. Statistics for the fourth quarter and an annual report will be published in March.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 were met within 20 working days by his Department in the first year of the Act's operation. [47741]
Mr. Touhig: The percentage of requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI) that were met within 20 working days by the Ministry of Defence during the first three quarters of 2005 were:
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | 71 |
| Quarter 2 | 80 |
| Quarter 3 | 80 |
The Department for Constitutional Affairs is committed to publishing quarterly information about departmental performance under FOI, including the volume and outcomes of requests. The bulletin for the third quarter can be found on the DCA website at http://www.foi.gov.uk/statsjul-sep05.htm and in the Library of the House. Statistics for the fourth quarter and an annual report will be published in March.
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