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25 Mar 2009 : Column 436W—continued
Ballistic Missile Defence
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the Government’s policy is on a ballistic missile defence shield in Europe to provide security against Iran; and if he will make a statement. [264961]
Mr. Hutton: The Government see ballistic missile defence as an important defensive capability which could contribute to the defence of the UK and our NATO Allies against potential future ballistic missile threats.
Defence: International Co-operation
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made since the Anglo-French summit of 27 March 2008 on the aspects of defence co-operation that were agreed there; and if he will make a statement. [264962]
Mr. Hutton: The UK and France have made good progress on all aspects of defence co-operation that were agreed during the 2008 summit.
The Declaration of Intent for the European Carrier Group Interoperability Initiative (ECGII) has so far been signed by nine European nations, building on the Summit commitment to Carrier Group Operations. The inaugural Steering Group met in Paris on 18 March. This is a high level declaration of intent aiming to increase interoperability between countries operating aircraft carriers or with naval vessels able to support carrier operations. There is no intention to create a standing carrier group.
The UK-France helicopter Initiative that was launched at the summit continues to gather momentum. The Helicopter Fund opened by the UK to support projects aimed at delivering helicopter capability to operational theatres now stands at €26 million with contributions from 15 nations. Other nations have offered to host multi-national helicopter exercises to prepare crews for deployment, to provide training courses, to donate surplus helicopters and even to supply pilots for other nations to use on operations. More importantly, the first nation to benefit from the initiative, the Czech Republic, deploys three helicopters to Afghanistan this year. Since the summit three other nations have also made a commitment to deploy helicopters and projects launched through the Helicopter Initiative will make a substantial and essential contribution to their theatre-entry equipment upgrades
and crew training requirements. All this effort is very closely co-ordinated with NATO and EDA programmes to address the same problem.
Both nations continue to discuss NATO transformation with one another and the work to strengthen EU/NATO co-operation is continuing. The anticipated return of France to the military structures of NATO has given a new impetus to these discussions.
Ministers and officials have met and continue to meet on numerous occasions to drive forward bilateral industrial defence co-operation. Progress has been made in all the areas highlighted in the 2008 Communiqué and we continue to seek new opportunities to develop our co-operation. The High Level Working Group will be providing a report on progress to the 2009 Anglo-French summit that is due to take place later this year.
Specifically we have made good progress with Complex Weapons. We have been working to assess the scope to co-operate on a range of projects including the potential to enter into Assessment Phases to examine enhancements for Storm Shadow and the French SCALP programme and to develop an anti-surface guided weapon for use on naval helicopters.
The UK and France have been working closely since the last summit to explore the opportunities for a common approach to A400M support. This work is continuing.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with his US counterpart on (a) European defence cooperation and (b) the Anglo-French defence partnership; and if he will make a statement. [264968]
Mr. Hutton: I have regular discussions with my US counterpart on a variety of defence issues, including a broad range of issues related to NATO and European Security and Defence Policy.
Departmental Electricity Generation
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) capital and (b) maintenance expenditure his Department has incurred on standby diesel generators for back-up electricity supply of his Department's estate in each year since March 1997. [266408]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental ICT
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which ICT projects costing more than £1 million his Department has initiated and abandoned before completion in each year since 2003-04; what costs were incurred in each project; who the main contractor for each project was; on what date each (a) commenced and (b) was abandoned; and if he will make a statement. [265512]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
EU Battlegroups
Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the expected cost of the Government's contribution to the EU Battlegroup roster will be in 2010. [265963]
Mr. Hutton: The UK commitment to the EU Battlegroup roster for January to July 2010 will be met by forces from the Small Scale Contingency Battlegroup element of the Joint Rapid Reaction Force (JRRF). As this is a national high readiness contingency which is already on stand-by during the relevant period, there is no additional cost to the UK of providing an EU Battlegroup on stand-by. The Small Scale Contingency Battlegroup will consist of forces drawn from the longstanding UK-Netherlands Amphibious Landing Force. As with all NATO activities, the principle of funding for the UK-Netherlands Amphibious Landing Force is that costs lie where they fall; each nation therefore pays its own costs.
There would be additional costs to the UK were the Battlegroup to deploy. However, an EU Battlegroup is a stand-by commitment intended for emerging contingencies and it is impossible to predict at the current time whether or not it will be deployed during its stand-by period. The cost to the UK of deploying an EU Battlegroup would depend on the nature and length of any deployment.
Gurkhas: Retirement
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of Gurkhas retired from the armed forces to (a) the UK, (b) Nepal and (c) other locations in each year since 1997. [265147]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Before 1 April 2007 all Gurkhas were discharged and retired in Nepal. From 1 April 2007 all Gurkhas have had the right to retire in the UK or Nepal and all have chosen to retire in the UK. Records are not held on where Gurkhas choose to live following their retirement from the Army, but it is estimated that some 6,000 ex-Gurkhas have settled in the UK under Home Office immigration rules introduced in 2004 and of these it is estimated that some 2,200 have retired since 1997.
Iraq: Peacekeeping Operations
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Woodspring (Dr. Fox) of 26 November 2008, Official Report, columns 1552-3W, on Iraq: peacekeeping operations, how much was paid to Harlow Specialist Life Support and Logistics for photocopier hire for use on Operation Herrick. [253339]
Mr. Quentin Davies: No payment has been made to Harlow Specialist Life Support and Logistics for photocopier hire for use on Operation Herrick.
The four-year contract with Harlow Specialist Life Support and Logistics for the hire of two photocopiers for use on Operation Telic has a total contract value of approximately £50,000.
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK military personnel he expects to be deployed in Iraq after August 2009. [265121]
Mr. Hutton: I refer the right hon. and learned Member to the answer I gave him on 2 February 2009, Official Report, column 875W.
Joint Working Groups
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 27 February 2009, Official Report, column 1150W, on nuclear weapons, how much was spent on the visits in each year; and how much was paid for by the Government in each year. [265114]
Mr. Hutton: Information on the precise costs is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, I am able to provide the average cost of UK attendance at the Joint Working Group meetings held in the US between 2001 and 2008; costs range from an average of £4,800 per meeting in 2001 to an average of £6,000 per meeting in 2008. All these costs are either directly or indirectly incurred by the UK Government.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how the costs of co-operation with the United States on nuclear weapons technology are shared under the co-operation terms of the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement; [265115]
(2) what the (a) total combined costs and (b) costs to the Government of co-operation with the United States on nuclear weapons technology have been in each of the last 30 years under the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement. [265116]
Mr. Hutton: Co-operation on experiments and trials conducted under the auspices of the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement, are generally undertaken on a “costs lie where they fall” basis. There are some exceptions to this, such as material and equipment procured to support national requirements or under bartering arrangements. The UK has also contributed to the funding of collaborative trials in the US which support the UK's strategic weapon programme.
Additionally, having judged it cost-effective to do so, MOD has recently entered into a collaborative arrangement which requires the UK to contribute financially to activities at the US National Ignition Facility (NIF) that support the UK programme. This extends the previously announced investment at the NIF to $64 million.
Neither the total combined costs, nor costs to the UK of our collaboration with the United States under the Mutual Defence Agreement are readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Military Aircraft: Helicopters
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of helicopters by type in the forward fleet were fit for purpose in each year since 2001. [264956]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 3 March 2009, Official Report, column 1441W, to the hon. Member for Woodspring (Dr. Fox).
Nuclear Submarines
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Interim Storage of Laid-Up Submarines Group will commence its programme of dismantling the UK’s defuelled nuclear powered submarines. [265166]
Mr. Quentin Davies: No decisions on the dismantling programme will be made until completion of a Strategic Environmental Assessment and public consultation. It is the intention to make an announcement regarding the programme in 2010.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when the strategic capacity for storing nuclear submarines in Rosyth Dockyard will be reached; [265167]
(2) when the strategic capacity for storing nuclear submarines in Devonport Royal Dockyard will be reached. [265168]
Mr. Quentin Davies: Any submarines leaving service with the Royal Navy are planned to remain at Devonport Royal Dockyard until there has been a decision on the dismantling solution.
Similarly, it is not intended to move any of the currently laid-up submarines until there is a decision on the dismantling solution.
Based on these plans, UK afloat storage capacity is forecast to run out before 2020.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether new facilities for defuelling and de-equipping submarines at Devonport Royal Dockyard will be completed by 2012. [265169]
Mr. Quentin Davies: Facilities for defuelling and de-equipping submarines at Devonport Royal Dockyard continue to be planned for completion in 2012.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in meeting the 2010 date for a storage solution for the nuclear waste from the seven UK nuclear vessels at Rosyth Dockyard. [265170]
Mr. Quentin Davies: We intend to make an announcement in 2010 regarding the proposed locations for submarine dismantling and the interim storage of the resultant nuclear waste. This is dependent on a number of factors, particularly the completion of a strategic environmental assessment later this year, and the intention to carry out further public consultation before any decisions are made. Good progress is being made towards this goal.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what other locations have been proposed as alternative storage sites for decommissioned nuclear submarines at Rosyth Dockyard. [265171]
Mr. Quentin Davies: No sites other than Devonport Royal Dockyard and Rosyth Dockyard are being considered as storage sites for laid-up submarines before they are dismantled.
We do not currently intend to move any of the laid-up submarines before a submarine dismantling site has been proposed. We plan to announce the proposed site in 2010.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the cost of moving the seven decommissioned UK nuclear submarines at Rosyth Dockyard to another site in the UK. [265172]
Mr. Quentin Davies: We do not intend to move any defuelled submarines until the completion of the strategic environmental assessment, public consultation and departmental approval of the dismantling solution.
Cost forecasts for any proposed movement would be developed as part of the preparation of the project’s Main Gate Business Case, which is planned to be completed in 2014.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the next UK nuclear submarine is due to be taken out of service; and whether it will be berthed at Rosyth Dockyard. [265173]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The next UK submarine due to be taken out of service is HMS Trafalgar, scheduled for later this year. We currently intend to store HMS Trafalgar at Devonport Royal Dockyard until she has been defuelled. Its subsequent storage location will depend on the dismantling programme that is being developed.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether all decommissioned submarines in Rosyth and Devonport Dockyards have been surveyed for possible holes. [265174]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Minister for Armed Forces gave on 13 June 2008, Official Report, column 560W.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effects on the environment of moving the seven decommissioned British nuclear powered submarines from the Rosyth Dockyard. [265194]
Mr. Quentin Davies: No decisions have been yet been made about when or how submarines will be moved.
The existing Interim Storage of Laid-Up Submarines (ISOLUS) Project Environmental Impact Assessment includes consideration of transportation matters. It is our intention to make this document available publicly in the near future.
More detailed assessments of the environmental impact of any planned movement of the submarines will be developed as required by relevant legislation.
Angus Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was discussed at the seventh meeting of the Interim Storage of Laid-Up Submarines Group on
Wednesday 11 March 2009; and if he will make a statement. [265195]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The Interim Storage of Laid-Up Submarines (ISOLUS) Advisory Group is an independently chaired group that provides independent assessment of proposals and outcomes. It also acts in a scrutiny and advisory role to the Ministry of Defence ISOLUS Steering Group.
The meetings are open to the public to observe and notes of meetings are published on the ISOLUS website
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