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17 Jun 2009 : Column 340W—continued
Nigeria: Military Aid
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the UK provides military aid to Nigeria. [279778]
Bill Rammell: The UK has provided military aid to Nigeria since UK/Nigeria Bilateral Defence Relations were re-established in 2001. MOD engagement with Nigeria is restricted to advice and support, implemented through a small team comprising our defence adviser; a British military advisory and training team; and a liaison officer to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Secretariat.
Following a meeting between my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and President Yar’Adua in July 2008, we have developed a focussed package of training assistance to the Nigerian armed forces to improve management of military operations and effective in-shore small boat patrolling in the Niger Delta. To take this forward the MOD is supporting the development of a Joint Maritime Security Training Centre at a military site close to Lagos. A range of courses are being offered to individuals, units and HQs, leading to a common doctrine with a strong theme throughout of respect for the rule of law and human rights.
Nimrod Aircraft
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Nimrod MRA4 aircraft his Department plans to procure in the next three years. [279937]
Mr. Quentin Davies: We currently have a contract to procure nine Nimrod MRA4 aircraft in the next three years.
Radioactive Waste: Waste Management
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much liquid radioactive waste has been discharged into the sea loch at Faslane in each year since it first hosted Polaris nuclear submarines; and whether he has received recent representations from the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency on the matter. [272723]
Mr. Quentin Davies: Officials are currently in the process of collating the information held by the Department; I will write to the hon. Member once this work is complete.
Substantive answer from Quentin Davies to Dai Davies:
In my answer of 12 May 2009 to your Question (Official Report: Column 753W), I undertook to write to you regarding how much liquid radioactive waste has been discharged into the sea loch at Faslane in each year since it first hosted Polaris.
Resolution Class submarines, which carried Polaris, operated out of Her Majesty's Naval Base Clyde at Faslane from 1967. Information regarding liquid discharges for the period 1967-76 is not held. The information relating to liquid radioactive waste discharged into the sea loch at Faslane since 1977 is provided at Annex A.
It may be helpful if I put this information into context. Between 1967-93 the discharge level set by Her Majesty's Industrial Pollution Inspectorate was a total radioactivity limit of 37 Gigabecquerels (GBq), excluding tritium. Since 1994 the agreement with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has included tritium and has required the information to be broken out into the different nuclide groups. The liquid radioactive discharge limits since 1994 are as follows:
Alpha Activity: 0.200 GBq
Beta Activity: 0.500 GBq
Cobalt-60: 0.500 GBq
Tritium: 1000.000 GBq
As you can see from the figures, the total liquid radioactive discharges into the sea at Faslane have not exceeded the limits set by the regulatory authorities, and in all cases are significantly below the limits; I can confirm that SEPA have not made any recent representations on the matter.
I hope this information is useful.
Annex A
| Table 1: Liquid radioactive waste discharged during 1977-1993 under agreement with Her Majesty's Industrial Pollution Inspectorate | ||
| Year | Radioactivity | Discharges in GBq |
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