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12 Nov 2009 : Column 698W—continued
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on (a) Substitute Single Service Accommodation and (b) Single Living Accommodation in each region in each year since 2004. [299835]
Mr. Kevan Jones: For details of the current monthly expenditure on substitute single service accommodation (SSSA) broken down by region, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I have given him today.
Details of the actual amounts spent in each year by region on SSSA and SLA are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
However, the following total amounts were spent on SSSA in each year since 2004:
| Expenditure (£ millions) | |
Armed Forces: Recruitment
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what countries the regimental recruiting teams have visited in each of the last five years. [299975]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Army recruiting teams (ARTs), formerly known as regimental recruiting teams, operate in the United Kingdom and are not active overseas.
The Army's overseas pre-selection teams do travel to those Commonwealth countries where interest in joining the army is high to conduct pre-selection tests among those who have already applied to join the British Army, although they have not done so since 2008. The list of countries visited in the last five years is provided in the following table:
| Financial year of visit | Countries visited |
Armed Forces: Social Security Benefits
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will discuss with the Chancellor of the Exchequer the provision of national insurance credits for spouses of armed forces personnel refused state benefits on the grounds that they have not paid sufficient national insurance contributions. [291977]
Jim Knight: I have been asked to reply.
The Service Command Paper The Nation's Commitment: Cross-Government Support to our Armed Forces, their Families and Veterans' (Cm 7424) published in July 2008 contained the Department's commitment to award Class 1 National Insurance Credits to spouses and civil partners of service personnel posted overseas with effect from April 2010. This will enable more members of service personnel families to qualify for Jobseeker's Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance.
Armed Forces: Training
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 23 June 2009, Official Report, column 743W, on "armed forces: training", what the percentage shortfall of (a) night vision goggles and (b) body armour used for pre-deployment training was in the latest period for which figures are available. [289093]
Bill Rammell: Our priority is to get new equipment to the front line as quickly as possible for use by personnel facing the greatest risk. However, we also look to ensure that sufficient new equipment is provided for troops during pre-deployment training. All new urgent operational business cases now include a clear requirement that sufficient quantities of equipment are procured and delivered for training before they are deployed operationally.
The last period for which figures are available was the Mission Rehearsal Exercise (MRX) for 11 (Light) Brigade in July 2009. Body armour was available to all those taking part in the exercise. Theatre Entry Standard 'Osprey' body armour was prioritised to those whose roles take them out of base locations-approximately two thirds of the total force. Theatre Entry Standard 'Osprey' was available at pre-deployment training to 45 per cent. of these troops. The availability in theatre is 100 per cent. for those who deploy outside of base locations. 1,000 additional sets of Osprey will have been delivered for training by the time of the MRX for the next brigade to deploy to Afghanistan.
This will result in an availability rate of 62 per cent. for those whose roles take them out of base locations and will continue to rise as industry delivers. By sharing equipment, all troops have an opportunity to train on theatre entry standard 'Osprey' prior to deployment. The inventory of night vision devices covers a range of equipment including weapon sights. For some of these deliveries are not yet complete. For the 11 (Light)
Brigade MRX, availability ranged from 100 per cent. to 12 per cent. Priority was given to those who will be required to use it most in theatre and all will have been trained in the use of night vision devices in theatre. As with 'Osprey', additional equipment is being constantly delivered to ensure UK forces have the best equipment available and there will be improved availability in time for the MRX for the next brigade to deploy.
Armed Forces: Uniforms
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on replacing the ceremonial uniforms of (a) the Grenadier Guards, (b) the Coldstream Guards, (c) the Scots Guards, (d) the Irish Guards and (e) the Welsh Guards in each of the last five years. [299607]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The annual expenditure for ceremonial uniforms for each of the listed Guard's Regiments in the last five financial years is provided in the following table. These figures include expenditure on hats, boots, belts, jackets, trousers and gloves.
| £ m illion | |||||
| Guard Regiment | FY 2004-05 | FY 2005-06 | FY 2006-07 | FY 2007-08 | FY 2008-09 |
Armoured Fighting Vehicles
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) required and (b) actual level of spare part availability is for each (i) armoured vehicle type and (ii) aircraft type in the armed forces (A) overall and (B) in Afghanistan. [297942]
Mr. Quentin Davies: The information for armoured vehicles is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Information on spares availability for rotary-wing aircraft is not held in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The required level of spares for fixed-wing aircraft is included in contractual agreements with industry or is set by the Front Line Command. The achieved level of available spares is measured as part of these agreements.
The following information for the required and achieved level of spares for each fixed-wing aircraft fleet is provided as at September 2009 unless otherwise stated. The level of spares for operational deployments to Afghanistan is not recorded separately unless otherwise stated.
Defence Estates: Sales
Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his most recent estimate is of the amount raised by the sale of Defence Estates stock in each of the last five years. [299976]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Defence estates is the Ministry of Defence (MOD) organisation responsible for the disposal of the Department's surplus sites. The total accrued receipts from MOD land and property sold in each of the last five financial years is provided in the following table:
| Financial year | Total receipts (£ millions) |
It is not possible to break these figures down by type of property sold without incurring disproportionate cost and effort.
Defence Estates: West Sussex
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information his Department holds on the Defence Estate in West Sussex. [299780]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Department, both centrally and at a local level, maintains a wide variety of information on the Defence estate, including that in West Sussex. This includes databases of land and property owned and disposed of, environmental information (such as land quality assessments) and site maps.
Current Ministry of Defence sites in West Sussex are:
Arun Valley Army Training Centre (ATC)
Baker Barracks, Thorney Island
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