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20 July 2009 : Column 876W—continued
Armed Forces: Training
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many armed forces personnel (a) entered and (b) completed fast jet training in each aircraft type in each of the last five years. [284519]
Bill Rammell: The following table provides the number of RAF and RN personnel who (a) entered and (b) completed fast jet training and the type of aircraft they trained on in each of the last five years. All personnel start training on the Hawk but move on to receive more advanced training on other types of aircraft.
| Financial year | |||||
| Aircraft type | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
| Note: Jaguar was withdrawn from Service after financial year 2005-06 and formal Typhoon pilot training commenced in financial year 2006-07. | |||||
With the introduction of Typhoon we are bringing into service a state of the art multi-role weapons system, suitable and adaptable to meet the challenges of the 21st century. It is in certain key aspects already a significantly more capable platform than the aircraft it replaced and it continues to develop and improve. Typhoon requires only a one-person crew rather than a two-person crew like the Tornado F3, which is being phased out.
Additionally, as the 2004 Defence White Paper "Delivering Security in a Changing World" made clear, "the effectiveness of modern precision weapons and sensors, which can be used in all weathers, day and night, mean that highly accurate air delivered offensive effects can be achieved with fewer fast jets than before... Similarly the air threat to deployed forces has greatly reduced and the capability of our air superiority aircraft and other air defence assets is continuing to improve. So we need fewer aircraft and fewer ground-based air defence systems to meet the threat."
The number of fast-jet aircrew completing training is sufficient to meet training requirements, and aircrew training for Typhoon is planned to increase over the next few years as the aircraft comes into wider service. Under current plans, by 2014-15 there will be an annual requirement for 16 newly qualified Typhoon pilots each year, to support a requirement for 92 front-line Typhoon pilots within a total force of 122 pilots.
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in what proportion of his Department's military training exercises (a) an injury to armed forces service personnel, (b) damage to public property and (c) damage to private property has occurred in each of the last 10 years. [286357]
Bill Rammell: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. I can assure the House, however, that every effort is taken to ensure that our service personnel undertake military training safely and to minimise damage to either public or private property.
We can identify the number of service personnel who have sustained an injury whilst on a training exercise as reported on the MOD Health and Safety systems between 2006 and 2008(1).
(1) Figures have been rounded to the nearest five.
| Service | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| (1) Naval Service figures include Royal Navy and Royal Marines. | |||
Armed Forces: Yorkshire and the Humber
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people were recruited to the armed forces through Armed Forces Career Offices in the Yorkshire and the Humber in each year since 2001. [285704]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The number of officers recruited to the Royal Air Force through Armed Forces Career Offices in the Yorkshire and Humberside area can be found in the following table.
| RAF | |
The Naval Service currently recruit officers through one of seven Officer Careers Liaison Centres (OCLCs) situated throughout England, and Army officers are currently recruited by Army Career Advisors and are not recruited through the Armed Forces Career Offices. Both of these figures are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The number of Other Ranks recruited to the armed forces through Armed Forces Career Offices in the Yorkshire and Humberside area can be found in the following table.
| Naval Service | Army | RAF | |
Following a move onto a new reporting system accurate data for the Naval Service and RAF are only available from financial year 2003-04.
Yorkshire and Humberside covers the Armed Forces Careers Offices based in Hull, Leeds and Sheffield. Additionally Army Regular soldier figures include those recruited from Army Career Information Offices in York, Scarborough, Barnsley, Doncaster, Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield and Wakefield.
All figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 to avoid disclosure and are provisional and subject to review.
Armoured Fighting Vehicles
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the capacity of the new Husky vehicle to withstand the impact of improvised explosive devices and mines in Afghanistan. [287100]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 14 July 2009, Official Report, column 269W. Husky has been subject to a range of tests, including the impact of improvised explosive devices. It has passed these tests, but for reasons of operational security it would be inappropriate to comment further.
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost per vehicle is of the extra armour added to the new Husky vehicle prior to deployment. [287101]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The armour solution on Husky is an integral part of the vehicle, embodied on the production line. There is no extra armour added to the vehicle prior to deployment. There is therefore no cost for extra armour.
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the unladen weight is of the new Husky vehicle. [287102]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The unladen weight of the Husky cannot be released as this would, or would be likely to, prejudice the operational security of our armed forces.
Armoured Fighting Vehicles: Procurement
Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria were used in the evaluation process for the procurement of the new Husky vehicle. [287099]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The Navistar Defence vehicle selected for the Husky programme was evaluated against a number of key user requirements, which included protection and mobility, a demanding delivery timeline and the requirement to provide value for money.
Army: Training
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average waiting time for an Army infantry recruit to enter basic training after passing initial entry assessments and requirements was in the latest period for which figures are available. [288199]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Over the period 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009, the average waiting time between an applicant obtaining a pass at an Army development and selection centre and commencing infantry training was 79 days.
Having obtained a pass at a selection centre, a commencement date is mutually agreed by the individual and their recruiting staff, and is tailored to the Army's and the individual's circumstances.
Astute Class Submarines
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the estimated in-service date is for each of the first four Astute-class submarines. [287192]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 22 January 2009, Official Report, column 1667W. The Astute programme is currently being re-baselined and I will make an announcement in due course.
Baha Mousa Inquiry
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether legal aid has been made available to any persons who are to appear as witnesses at the Baha Mousa Inquiry. [287179]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth [holding answer 16 July 2009]: Legal aid is not available to participants in public inquiries. However, under the Inquiries Act 2005 the chairman may make awards where he considers it appropriate. I understand that the right hon. Sir William Gage, chairman of the Baha Mousa Public Inquiry, which is established under the Inquiries Act, has made two awards under section 40(2) of that Act in respect of legal representation for two of the Inquiry's core participants. Separately, legal assistance at no cost to the individual will be offered to all current and former service personnel and civil servants who are asked to provide evidence as a consequence of their employment.
Barron Report
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Barron Report on defence land needs. [245123]
Mr. Kevan Jones: A copy of the 'Barron Report', which was prepared some years ago, is being obtained and will be placed in the Library of the House.
Substantive answer from Kevan Jones to Liam Fox:
In my answer to your Parliamentary Question of 12 January (Official Report, column 86W), asking for a copy of the Barron Report on defence lands needs to be placed in the Library of the House, I advised that a copy was being obtained and would be placed in the library of the house as soon as practicable.
I regret that, given the amount of time that has elapsed since the production of the Report (some 20 years); and despite strenuous efforts by officials, it has not proved possible to locate a copy.
I apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused.
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