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23 Jan 2008 : Column 2010W—continued
Armed Forces: Scotland
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) inflow and (b) outflow of units based in (i) Scotland and (ii) Wales was in the latest period for which figures are available. [179678]
Derek Twigg: The inflow and outflow of personnel to and from units are not produced routinely and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Armoured Fighting Vehicles
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the (a) combat and (b) un-laden weight of the (i) WMIK, (ii) E-WMIK and (iii) M-WMIK vehicles. [180097]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The (a) combat weight of WMIK, E-WMIK and M-WMIK vehicles will vary depending on the type of operation they are involved in. Additionally it would not be appropriate to release the combat weight of these vehicles as to do so would potentially prejudice the security and effectiveness of our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The (b) un-laden weight of the WMIK, E-WMIK and M-WMIK vehicles are set out in the following table:
| (b) Un-laden weight kg | |
Chad: Peacekeeping Operations
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will make a statement on the status of the European Security and Defence Policy mission to Chad; [179680]
(2) how many force generation conferences have taken place for the European Security and Defence Policy mission to Chad since August 2007. [179681]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Operation Commander for the ESDP mission to Chad and the Central African Republic, Lieutenant General Nash, has held five formal force generation conferences. These took place on 9 November, 14 November and 21 November, 19 December 2007 and 11 January 2008. After the fifth force generation conference on 11 January, General Nash confirmed that he now has enough forces and assets available to recommend launching the mission. The final phase of planning has now begun and is due to culminate at the General Affairs and External Relations Council on 28 January, when the operation is expected to be formally launched. EUFOR is expected to reach its Initial Operational Capability (IOC) four to six weeks after a decision to launch the operation has been taken.
Departmental Data Protection
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what requirements his Department and its agencies place on contractors in relation to audit of personal data and IT equipment. [176626]
Derek Twigg: Contractors have a legal duty to comply with the requirements of the law of the land, including the Data Protection Act.
In addition, the Department has standard defence contract conditions which protect against disclosure of information in general, and will also apply bespoke conditions where necessary.
Departmental Databases
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many electronic databases there are containing (a) names, (b) addresses, (c) bank details and (d) other personal information about members of the public within his Department. [170830]
Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally and cannot be provided except at disproportionate cost.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when each of his Department’s electronic databases containing personal information on members of the public was first created; [170831]
(2) how many staff of each grade in his Department have access to electronic databases which contain personal information on members of the public; [170833]
(3) how many times his Department’s databases containing personal information on members of the public have been accessed in each month of the last five years; [170834]
(4) how many times his Department’s databases containing personal information on members of the public have been transferred (a) physically and (b) electronically in each year since 1997. [170835]
Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental E-mail
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to reduce the number of hard copies of e-mails printed by officials in his Department. [179474]
Derek Twigg: The MOD discourages the unnecessary printing of e-mails as part of our overall policy of managing waste in accordance with the waste hierarchy (reduce, reuse, recycle). Where electronic documents are printed it is our policy that all unrestricted waste papers are consigned to recycling activities.
An Information Management Protocol is currently being developed and this will reinforce that e-mails should not be printed unless absolutely necessary.
Departmental Redundancy
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of redundancies in his Department in the 12 months preceding (a) 30 June 2004, (b) 30 June 2005 and (c) 30 June 2006. [175341]
Derek Twigg: To provide specific information would require a Department-wide trawl to ascertain total costs for all individuals who had left the Department on redundancy terms. This could be done only at disproportionate cost.
We hold information centrally on a Department-wide voluntary early release scheme which was launched in March 2005, in connection with the civil service-wide reductions required under the 2004 spending review. The total liability cost to the Department of individuals who left or are expected to leave on voluntary terms under the MOD Early Release Scheme (2005) is as follows:
| Financial year | Amount (£ million) |
Iraq: Peacekeeping Operations
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many (a) armoured vehicles, (b) aircraft, (c) helicopters and (d) weapons systems of each type have been removed from service as a result of battle damage in Iraq and Afghanistan; [171897]
(2) how many (a) armoured vehicles, (b) aircraft, (c) helicopters and (d) weapons systems have been made non-operable as a result of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2003. [171898]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: I am withholding the information requested as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.
Nuclear Weapons
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps have been taken by the Government to assess the feasibility of implementing non-nuclear strategic defence options after the expiration of the viability of the UK's current nuclear deterrent. [180610]
Des Browne [holding answer 22 January 2008]: As the December 2006 White Paper “The Future of the United Kingdom's Nuclear Deterrent” (Cm 6994) made clear, the continuing risk from the proliferation of nuclear weapons and the certainty that a number of other countries will retain substantial nuclear arsenals, means that our minimum nuclear deterrent capability is likely to remain a necessary element of our security. We can only deter such threats in future through the continued possession of nuclear weapons. Conventional capabilities cannot have the same deterrent effect. On 14 March 2007, the House of Commons voted by a clear majority to support the Government's decision to sustain the UK's nuclear deterrent beyond the life of the Vanguard class submarines.
Spare Parts: Lost Property
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the value was of spare parts lost in transit in each year since 2003. [180272]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Data are not held in such a way that enables the separate identification of “spare parts”. Losses in transit have only been recorded separately since 2005. For financial years 2005-06 and 2006-07, the reported value of losses in transit was £4.8 million and £2.9 million respectively. As at 31 December 2007, the total value of losses recorded for financial year 2007-08 is £2.3 million.
Unidentified Flying Objects
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer of 27 June 2007, Official Report, column 801W, on unidentified flying objects, what the security classification of the report was; what its official title was; who commissioned the study; for what reason; and if he will place it in the Library. [180170]
Derek Twigg: The report was entitled ‘Unidentified Aerial Phenomena in the UK Air Defence Region’. It was commissioned by the Scientific and Technical Directorate of the Ministry of Defence’s Defence Intelligence Staff (DIS) for the purpose of establishing whether anything of intelligence value could be determined from the sighting reports by members of the public that had been copied to the DIS. The full report was classified Secret UK Eyes Only. An expurgated version of the report is already available on the internet via the MOD’s Freedom of Information Act website at:
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture: Subsidies
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has received on Common Agricultural Policy subsidies from the 10 largest landowners in the UK; and if he will make a statement. [179750]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department receives a range of representations on Common Agricultural Policy subsidies but does not hold information on who the 10 largest landowners in the UK are.
Animal Welfare: Horses
Mr. MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what measures the Government are taking to ban the long-distance transportation of live horses and ponies for slaughter in Europe; and if he will make a statement; [180969]
(2) if the Government will make representations to ensure the enforcement of Council Regulation No. 1/2005, on the protection of animals during transport, in all Member States; and if he will make a statement. [180970]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 22 January 2008]: A ban on the export of horses and ponies for slaughter would be illegal under EU free trade rules. It has long been Government policy that we prefer the export of meat rather than live animal exports for slaughter. New animal welfare measures came into effect in January 2007 with the implementation of EC Regulation 1/2005 on the welfare of animals during transportation. The provisions include important horse welfare measures that the UK put forward and which were supported by horse welfare organisations.
We are pleased to learn that it now seems likely the Commission will bring forward the planned review of the Regulation to 2009 instead of 2011 as originally intended. The Review will consider a number of issues arising from the implementation of the Regulation, including the need for robust enforcement of the animal welfare provisions in all member states.
Animals: Quarantine
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many animals were in quarantine in the UK in the latest period for which figures are available, broken down by species; and if he will make a statement. [180425]
Jonathan Shaw: The provisional figures for 2007 are set out as follows. The final figures will be included in the next Chief Veterinary Officer’s Annual Report, which will be published on the DEFRA website.
| Number | |
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what size of enclosure each type of animal entering the UK is kept in during quarantine; and if he will make a statement. [180426]
Jonathan Shaw: DEFRA does not lay down rules specifically for the welfare of animals in quarantine. However, in consultation with premises owners and welfare organisations, we have produced a voluntary Code of Practice on the welfare of dogs and cats in quarantine premises (set out) which outlines recommended minimum internal measurements for individual accommodation units. Premises which comply with this code are awarded a star, and a list of starred premises is available on the DEFRA website quarantine pages. There are regular inspections of quarantine premises by Animal Health Officers (usually at least four times a year, with two visits being unannounced).
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