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3 Dec 2007 : Column 837W—continued
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the winter supplementary estimates, HC 29, what the source is of the £55 million operating income not appropriated in aid; for what reasons the direct resource departmental expenditure limit will increase by that amount; and if he will make a statement. [169357]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The £55 million operating income is deposited in bank accounts which have not yet been brought to vote. These are subject to end year flexibility (EYF) arrangements where the Treasury have agreed that the Department can draw these funds down as additional Direct RDEL.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the winter supplementary estimates HC 29, for what reasons he plans to transfer £455 million from capital departmental expenditure limit (DEL) to resource DEL; and if he will make a statement. [169358]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The requested transfer of £455 million from Capital to Resource DEL reflects forecast actual spending patterns in the Department's operating costs, such as increased fuel prices.
Departmental Publicity
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been spent by his Department on advertising in the last 12 months. [167959]
Derek Twigg: The amount spent on armed forces recruitment advertising in financial year 2006-07 was as follows:
| Force | Amount spent on recruitment advertising (£ million) |
Details of civilian recruitment advertising costs are not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate costs.
Advertising costs in financial year 2006-07 with regard to raising awareness of veterans issues were £62,970.
It should be noted that the aforementioned figures take no account of Departmental PR activities.
Directorate of Targeting and Information Operations
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the work of the directorate of targeting and information operations; and who the members of the group are. [169424]
Des Browne: The role of the directorate of targeting and information operations is to provide the policy lead and strategic direction for military targeting, rules of engagement and information operations. It has a staff of 83.
EU Countries: Military Exercises
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what exercises UK armed forces are committed to with European Union formations for the next 18 months; and which such exercises they have participated in over the last 12 months. [169892]
Des Browne: There are no standing European Union military formations and the European Union does not conduct military exercises apart from headquarters level planning exercises. Two UK staff officers were involved in a planning exercise in 2007 and on similar level of involvement is envisaged in 2008.
EU Defence Policy
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence to which European Union formations UK armed forces have a potential obligation; and on what scale. [169893]
Des Browne: There are no standing European Union military formations. All forces are, volunteered by member states on a case-by-case basis.
The EU mission Operation Althea continues in Bosnia Herzegovina and the UK fills 10 posts in the headquarters. The UK, along with Germany and Italy, is providing the NATO pan-Balkans Operational Reserve Force until the end of 2008.
Under standing augmentation procedures, the UK has provided four staff officers to the headquarters for the proposed ESDP mission to Chad. These staff are currently in France.
The UK has also volunteered to provide one of the two EU Battle Groups on standby in the second half of 2008. The UK and the Netherlands have offered to provide an EU Battlegroup on standby from January to June 2010.
Battlegroups would only deploy on operations following a unanimous decision from all 27 EU member states.
The UK Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ) at Northwood is one of five national operational headquarters declared available for EU military operations. PJHQ will host and provide technical and administrative support, including trained core staff, for the Nordic Battle Group on standby between January and June 2008. The UK has offered the same facility for the Polish-led Battle Group in the first half of 2010.
EU Rapid Reaction Force: Aviation
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the status is of the EU’s Air Rapid Reaction Force; and if he will make a statement. [169463]
Des Browne: There is no EU Air Rapid Reaction Force.
As part of their collective commitment to the EU’s Headline Goal 2010 process, member states undertook to develop the ability rapidly to generate forces to support EU-led operations. The EU Military Committee is currently discussing proposals to identify for planning purposes, air assets that member states might make available at short notice to support EU led crisis management operations.
Ex-servicemen: Hearing Impaired
Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration he has given to allocating resources to the provision of new techniques for assessing hearing deterioration among former military personnel. [169210]
Derek Twigg [holding answer 29 November 2007]: In line with generally accepted current practice, pure tone audiometry is the main method used to inform determination of claims for hearing loss by former military personnel under the War Pension and Armed Forces Compensation Schemes. Pure tone audiometry is undertaken to quality assured standards by suitably trained technicians. Where the test is considered unreliable, unrepeatable or in some other way unrepresentative of true hearing level, other tests may be used such as evoked response audiometry.
Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will (a) initiate a review of and (b) publish the evidence his Department uses when considering hearing tribunals for former military personnel. [169312]
Derek Twigg [holding answer 29 November 2007]: The approach used by the Department in the assessment of noise-induced hearing loss for the purposes of the War Pension Scheme was upheld by an independent expert review in 1998-99 and further endorsed by the November 2002 Industrial Injuries Advisory Council report on occupational deafness. The audiological literature is kept under review including research on technical aspects of, and new approaches to, hearing loss assessment and possible application to MOD's no fault compensation schemes. The scheme rules governing the assessment of noise induced sensorineural hearing loss are currently in article 42 of and part VI of schedule 1 to the Naval, Military and Air Forces Etc. (Disablement and Death) Service Pensions Order 2006.
Hacking
Dr. Fox:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many instances of cyber-attacks on his Department’s (a) public internet website, (b) non-classified intranet, (c) classified intranet, (d) non-classified e-mail system and (e) classified e-mail
system were reported in each month since 2005; and what the circumstances were of each incident. [169461]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: It would not be in the interests of the UK’s national security for MOD to confirm whether it holds information about attacks against its IT systems as this would enable individuals to deduce how successful the Department is in detecting these attacks.
Information Strategy Co-ordination Group
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the work of the Information Strategy Co-ordination Group; and who the members of the group are. [169425]
Des Browne: The Information Strategy Co-ordination Group had a mandate to initiate and oversee information strategies for operations and other areas of UK defence interest. Membership comprised the Director General Operational Policy, Director of Targeting and Information Operations, the MOD Media Operations and Press cells, representatives of the Permanent Joint Headquarters and other Government departments as appropriate. The group last met in December 2006. Its work has been taken over by other internal MOD and inter-departmental bodies.
Iraq Conflict: Legal Opinion
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library the private legal advice obtained by armed forces chiefs prior to the invasion of Iraq. [167334]
Des Browne: We hold no such advice.
Iraq: Medals
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will amend the regulations for the award of campaign medals to members of the armed forces who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan to enable indication of the number of multiple deployments which have been undertaken. [167740]
Derek Twigg: There are no plans to amend the regulations for the Iraq campaign medal and operational service medal Afghanistan to recognise multiple tours. To acknowledge that armed forces personnel are returning to theatres of operation where they have already received a campaign medal the accumulated campaign service medal was introduced in January 1994. The medal recognises long campaign service rendered by members of the armed forces since 14 August 1969. It is awarded to holders of the general service medal 1962, the operational service medal, British campaign medals and approved medals instituted by other recognised organisations for multinational operations, on completion of 36 months accumulated campaign service, after first qualifying for the appropriate medal. A clasp is awarded for each subsequent period of 36 months accumulated campaign service.
Iraq: Peacekeeping Operations
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether all British forward field hospitals in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan have CT scanners; and how many each forward field hospital has. [168890]
Derek Twigg: In Iraq, the UK has one Role 2 (Enhanced) field hospital, located at the contingency operating base, Basra. In Afghanistan, it has one Role 2 (Enhanced) field hospital at camp bastion, the UK military base in Helmand Province. Both have a CT scanner, which is sufficient to meet current and projected requirements.
In both Iraq and Afghanistan, CT scanners are available at other coalition medical facilities, and these may be used in treating UK casualties if it is more convenient to do so.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of Army troops who (a) are and (b) have been on operational deployment in Iraq during the month of August in each year since 2003 is from (i) Scottish regiments and (ii) the Royal Regiment of Scotland. [168894]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Historical data to support the calculation of the proportion of the total number of Army personnel who have been on operational deployment to Iraq during the month of August since 2003 and who are from particular units are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
There is no single definition of a ‘Scottish Regiment’. However, there are units which can be considered as having direct Scottish lineage, i.e. the battalions of The Royal Regiment of Scotland, The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, 19 Regiment Royal Artillery, 40 Regiment Royal Artillery and 1st Battalion The Scots Guards. Of these, the following have, since 2003, been deployed in Iraq during the month of August as formed regular army units:
| Unit deployed to Iraq | |
Members: Correspondence
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Minister for Veterans will respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 14 September (reference: MC04936/2007). [170091]
Derek Twigg: I replied to the hon. Member on 28 November. I apologise for the delay.
Military Aircraft: Helicopters
Dr. Fox:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the 10-year projected budget was for (a)
helicopter procurement and (b) the Future Rotorcraft capability in each year since 1997. [162523]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The 10 year projected budget for helicopter procurement and the element of this reported under the Future Rotorcraft Capability programme is shown as follows.
| Nearest £100 million | ||
| Total forward forecast helicopter procurement | Future Rotorcraft Capability element | |
| RY = Review Year —no formal recosting of the future budget took place. | ||
These figures include funding for the introduction of new helicopters into service and to undertake significant modification programmes such as midlife enhancements or life extension activities; they do not include funding for emergent urgent requirements and separately funded commodity items. Figures prior to 2001 are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The figures for financial years 2001-02 and 2002-03 are presented in accordance with previous accounting policies within the Department and reflect cash flows rather than the accrued value of the programme. Direct comparison of these costs with subsequent forecasts is not advised.
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