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30 Oct 2007 : Column 1356W—continued
Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the unit production cost of the Joint Strike Fighter for financial years 2008-09 to 2024-25. [161529]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Unit production costs will be dependant on the number of aircraft being produced for all other partner nations and the delivery profile. The UK’s procurement cost is likely to be up to £10 billion, depending on the number of aircraft required.
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the cost of procuring the (a) Super Hornet, (b) marinised Eurofighter and (c) Rafale in the event of a delay or cancellation of the Joint Strike Fighter programme. [161579]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth [holding answer 29 October 2007]: In reaching the Joint Combat Aircraft selection decision, we assessed a number of options including Typhoon, Rafale and Super Hornet. Our judgment was, and remains, that the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) represents the most affordable solution to best meet United Kingdom requirements.
Military Aid: Floods
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will make a statement on the contribution of the armed forces during the recent flooding emergency; [154229]
(2) how many armed forces personnel were involved in the assistance of civil authorities during the recent flooding emergency. [154230]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Approximately 1,000 personnel drawn from the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, the Army and the Royal Air Force were involved during the recent flooding emergency in southern England, although only about 350 personnel were deployed at any one time. All personnel were deployed at the request of the Environment Agency, and undertook tasks such as search and rescue, construction of emergency flood defences and the distribution of bulk and bottled water. This armed forces deployment did not impact on either pre-deployment training or support to current operations.
No further comment would be appropriate at this time due to the ongoing independent inquiry which was announced by the Secretary of State for the Environment and Rural Affairs on 12 July 2007.
Military Attachés
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what changes in costs will be effected for his Department through the rebalancing of resources in the defence attaché network. [161566]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The measures announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 17 September 2007, Official Report, column 125WS, are likely to result in a decrease in the costs of the defence attaché network to the MOD to an estimated £33.8 million in 2008-09 from the total estimated cost of £38.3 million in 2007-08.
Nuclear Weapons: Expenditure
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the projected expenditure is in the period covered by the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review on (a) the UK nuclear deterrent programme, including on the atomic weapons establishment and the future submarine programme, (b) the atomic weapons establishment and (c) the future submarine programme. [158335]
Des Browne: Projected expenditure on all aspects of the United Kingdom's independent nuclear deterrent—operation of and support to the current deterrent system, the costs of the atomic weapons establishment and expenditure on the programme to maintain the United Kingdom's nuclear deterrent capability beyond the life of the current system—over the next three years is expected to be:
| £ billion at outturn prices | |
Expenditure at the Atomic Weapons Establishment is expected to be:
| £ million at outturn prices | |
The estimated costs of the programme to maintain the United Kingdom's deterrent capability beyond the life of the current system, as set out in the December 2006 White Paper, ‘The Future of the United Kingdom’s Nuclear Deterrent’ (Cm 6994) and endorsed by Parliament on 14 March 2007, over the next three years are:
| £ million at outturn prices | |
Peacekeeping Operations
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel have served in (a) Afghanistan since 2001 and (b) Iraq since 2003. [157035]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Between January 2003 and January 2007, centrally held records indicate that around 134,000 UK personnel deployed to the Joint Operational Area for Operation TELIC. Between October 2005 and January 2007, centrally held records indicate that around 24,500 UK personnel deployed to the Joint Operational Area for Operation HERRICK. Centrally held records do not indicate how long each individual spent in theatre, and these figures will include those who were making short visits in addition to those on full deployments. In addition, there may be some double-counting of personnel who have deployed more than once over the period. More detailed information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Reserve Forces: Deployment
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many volunteer reservists in each service were deployed on operations in each year since 1997. [157043]
Derek Twigg: The introduction of the Joint Pay Administration (JPA) system, which led to the closure of legacy systems, means that provision of the historical information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Royal Fleet Auxiliary
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how much (a) capital and (b) revenue expenditure was made on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary in
each of the last 10 years; what the forecast expenditure is in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement; [151522]
(2) when he will reply to question 151522 on Royal Fleet Auxiliary tabled by the hon. Member for Portsmouth South on 19 July. [158824]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth:
CinCFleet does not manage operating costs on the basis of individual ships or ship types, but on functions. The Royal Fleet Auxiliary
(RFA) does not therefore have a distinct, identifiable budget, and figures for the running costs of RFA vessels are either not available or could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, for other categories of expenditure the following indicative figures are available for the years 2002-03 to 2007-08. We have defined Revenue Expenditure as Resource Expenditure under the current Treasury control framework.
| £ million | ||||||
| 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08( 1) | |
| (1) The figures for 2007-08 are forecasts based on expenditure to date. (2) Figures for manpower pay and allowances and for asset depreciation and cost of capital before 2004-05 are not available centrally. (3) From 2004-05, expenditure on refit work was recategorised from Revenue to Capital expenditure. | ||||||
Spending plans for future years are kept under review as part of the departmental planning round. The RFA will continue to be funded at a level that ensures it is able to meet its operational and standing commitments.
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