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18 Dec 2006 : Column 1490W—continued
Separated Service Guidelines
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel in the (a) Navy, (b) Army and (c) Air Force exceeded guidelines for separated service in each year since 2001; and what assessment he has made of trends in those numbers over that period. [105000]
Derek Twigg [holding answer 7 December 2006]: Separated service is recorded as an average percentage of the total trained strength. Separated service has only been recorded for all three services since 2002. Set out in the following table is separated service figures for each service since then.
| Percentage of total personnel who have breached individual harmony | |||
| Year and quarter | Royal Navy | Army | Royal Air Force |
In line with Second Sea Lord's personal functional standards, harmony breaches for the Royal Navy are minimal; the RAF's latest figure puts harmony within target and although the Army's separated service figures breach harmony, the percentage has been gradually reducing as future army structure and Northern Ireland normalisation have taken effect.
Service Education Allowances
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the estimated cost is of service education allowances in 2006-07; and what estimates he has made of the cost in future. [108291]
Derek Twigg: The estimated cost of Service education allowances for academic year 2006-07 is £100 million. The Department is currently planning expenditure for financial years 2007-08 to 2010-11 and has not finalised our estimated costs for Service education allowances. The final estimates will take into account inflation and any increases in school fees.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in service education allowances between 2001-02 and 2005-06; and if he will make a statement. [108396]
Derek Twigg: The annual increase in the rate of Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) is based on the average cost of fees at those schools with at least30 pupils from Service families. Between 2001-02 and 2005-06, school fee increases have been higher than inflation. Over the same period, the number of Service children benefiting from the allowance rose from 7,130 in 2001-02 to 8,029 in 2004-05, before declining to 7,886 in 2005-06. This accounts for the increase in cost of Continuity of Education Allowance between 2001 and 2006.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the reason is for the difference between the figure for the number of service children covered by continuity of education allowance in the spring term at 2004-05 given in the answer of 6 November 2006, Official Report, columns 801-02W, on boarding school allowance, and that given in a Freedom of Information request dated 1 September 2005, reference 25-08-2005-090717-002. [108419]
Derek Twigg: In September 2005, in response to the Freedom of Information request (reference 25-08-2005-090717-002) it was reported that the number of children benefiting from service education allowances in the spring term 2004-05 was 7,914. However, in response to a written question on 6 November 2006, Official Report, columns 801-02W, it was reported that some 8,029 children benefited from such allowances in spring term 2004-05, a difference of 115. This was due to the availability of more accurate figures in June 2006, following the Royal Air Force's transition to Joint Personnel Administration in April 2006. These figures, along with others, were used to advise the House of Commons Defence Select Committee for their report ‘Educating Service Children’, published on 11 July 2006.
Special Forces Training: (Medical Services)
Paul Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what medical services are available to those taking part
in the special forces basic parachute training course; and what changes to such services have been made in the last 12 months. [105607]
Derek Twigg: The medical services provided in support of all military trainees undertaking basic parachute courses currently include a Trauma Management Vehicle and two medical assistants provided by RAF Brize Norton medical centre. The level of provision has increased from one to two medical assistants in the past 12 months. Agreement has also been reached with the Oxfordshire Ambulance NHS Trust regarding the onward transport of casualties using civilian paramedic ambulances.
Sponsored Students
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 30 October 2006, Official Report, column 112W, on sponsored students, why the cost of Navy cadetships for the first half of 2006-07 is not yet known. [106646]
Derek Twigg: The naval service provides university cadetships in-service degrees for officers. These personnel have already been recruited and are in-service while undertaking their studies. The cost of normal cadetships was not originally provided because cadets have already been recruited. The tuition fees for the two Naval Service Cadetships for 2006-07 are £12,000.
Telecommunications Masts
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many mobile phone masts have been placed in Territorial Army barracks; what funds have been received in recompense; and what use has been made of those funds. [108385]
Derek Twigg: There are a total of 77 mobile phone masts across 57 Territorial Army establishments within the United Kingdom. The revenue generated from these masts during financial year 2005-06 is in the region of £486,000. It is not possible to provide exact details of what use has been made of these funds as this information is not held centrally. However, the income generated is spent in accordance with HM Treasury guidance and the Reserve Forces and Cadets Association regulations. A large proportion of the recompense is reinvested for the benefit of our reserves and cadets.
Territorial Army
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on the Territorial Army in the last period for which figures are available; and what percentage that figure represents of total defence spending in that period. [108646]
Derek Twigg: Information on how much is spent on the Territorial Army is not held centrally.
Costs are spread over a variety of budgets and these will vary according to the composition of the units, their role and where they are deployed. These details could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Thermal Imaging Equipment
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will reconsider the scale of issue of (a) thermal imaging sights, (b) thermal imaging equipment and (c) any subsequent equipment procured; and if he will make a statement. [105413]
Mr. Ingram: Thermal imaging sights and equipment are issued to fulfil a particular operational or training requirement, where in turn they are controlled and prioritised by operational commanders. This requirement will alter depending on the scale of commitment, the environment and available technology. To stay abreast of changes in these areas, as with all equipment, the MOD carries out regular reviews of scales, as well as reacting to new requests from commanders.
The most recent and ongoing review was initiated this Summer, and has already reallocated available thermal imaging capability, in appropriate quantities, across operational and training commitments to meet the latest circumstances. Furthermore, new sights and equipment have been ordered from industry to ensure that the latest technology is afforded to our troops.I also refer the hon. Member to my reply of12 December 2006, Official Report, column 934W.
Warships
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the strategic basis was for reducing the total of destroyers and frigates in the Fleet to 25. [109276]
Mr. Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the White Paper “Delivering Security in a Changing World Future Capabilities” (Cm 6269), presented to the House in July 2004.
Working Hours
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average working hours were for personnel in the Army in each year since 2001. [105674]
Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally. However, the Defence Analytical Services Agency (DASA) carry out a Continuous Survey of Working Patterns which is used to provide estimates of average hours worked. A time series of these estimates from 200-02 to 2005-06 are shown in the following table.
Education and Skills
Foundation Degrees
Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the likely effect of allowing further education colleges to offer foundation degree courses on universities that also offer such courses. [109734]
Bill Rammell: The number of Foundation Degree enrolments has risen in five years to almost 47,000, and our ambitions are for further significant increases to 100,000 by 2010. If we are to achieve these ambitions, we will need to see volume growth in programmes delivered in further education colleges and higher education institutions alike.
Health Placements (Children)
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children are in long-term health placements in England. [107832]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: I have been asked to reply.
Information on the number of children in long-term health placements is not collected centrally.
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