| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
9 Mar 2010 : Column 170W—continued
Army: Lost Property
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many rounds of ammunition have been reported (a) lost and (b) stolen in each of the last 12 months. [319719]
Mr. Kevan Jones: This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Copthorne Barracks
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the operating costs for Copthorne Barracks were in each financial year since 2001; [320764]
(2) what estimate he has made of the operating costs for Copthorne Barracks in each of the next three years. [320765]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Due to changes in the accounting systems, costs prior to 2003 are not held. Operating costs for Copthorne Barracks since 2003 are shown in the following table.
| £ million | |
Estimated costs for the next three years are as follows;
| £ million | |
The figures have been taken from the operating costs statement and cover property management, utilities and other general infrastructure costs.
Variations are due to changes in the budgetary structure, activity levels for units in Copthorne Barracks and property management projects.
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the (a) medium-term and (b) long-term future of Copthorne Barracks; and if he will make a statement. [320766]
Mr. Kevan Jones: There are currently no plans to change the use of Copthorne Barracks.
The structure and organisation of the Army and its supporting infrastructure are kept under constant review.
Departmental Travel
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much (a) Ministers and (b) staff of each grade in (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies spent on first class travel in the last 12 months. [320393]
Mr. Kevan Jones: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19 October 2009, Official Report, column 1224W, to the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Mr. Burstow) on departmental rail travel.
The breakdown of these figures between Ministers and staff by grade/rank is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Future Large Aircraft
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2010, Official Report, column 773W, on Future Large Aircraft, how much of the £848 million on the A400M programme has been spent under each cost category; and what sums are recoverable should the programme be cancelled. [321183]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my noble Friend the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Ministry of Defence, Lord Drayson, to the noble Lord, Lord Gilbert of Dudley, in another place on 25 January 2010, Official Report, House of Lords, column WA285. The Government do not expect the project to be cancelled, and we reached agreement in principle on the terms of a renegotiation on 5 March.
Gurkhas
Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the cost of the public purse has been of the Gurkha Settlement Office in Kathmandu since its inception; [321262]
(2) how many applications for settlement initially refused by the Gurkha Settlement Office have been accepted following re-submission through the Gurkha Army Ex-Servicemen's Organisation. [321263]
Mr. Kevan Jones: The Gurkha Settlement Office was opened in October 2009, using existing accommodation and facilities within the British Gurkhas Kathmandu base. It is staffed by four locally employed civilians. The cost of setting up and staffing the office to date is £20,000.
The Gurkha Settlement Office was not set up to process visa application forms. It offers ex-Gurkhas and their dependants, free of charge, information about life in the UK, so that they can reach an informed decision about whether they want to apply for settlement in this country. If they decide that they do wish to apply, then the Gurkha Settlement Office provides support by helping with the completion of visa application forms and through liaison with the Gurkha Records Office to supply some of the documentation needed to support a visa application. The Gurkha Settlement Office has received nearly 4,000 visits and around 2,000 ex-Gurkhas and/or their dependants have registered on the settlement office database for help with their visa application. Visa applications are processed by the UK Border Agency, in their regional centre in New Delhi. Under the new immigration rules over 6,600 visa applications have been received from ex-Gurkhas and their dependants and over 3,650 visas have been authorised or issued. It is not known how many of these applicants may have sought help from the Gurkha Army Ex-Servicemen's Organisation (GAESO) when preparing their application forms.
Nimrod Aircraft
Mr. Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what long-range maritime cover will be in place following the withdrawal of the Nimrod Mk2s in April 2010 prior to the introduction of the Nimrod Mk4s in 2012. [320925]
Mr. Quentin Davies: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer the Minister for the Armed Forces, my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Bill Rammell), gave on 1 February 2010, Official Report, column 47W, to the hon. Member for Woodspring (Dr. Fox).
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received from representatives of (a) the Scottish Fishermen's Federation and (b) Oil and Gas UK on the removal from service of the Nimrod MR2. [321368]
Bill Rammell: Ministers have received no representations from these bodies on the removal from service of the Nimrod MR2.
Royal Irish Regiment
Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many applications for an extension to service beyond the age of 55 with the Home Service Battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment were (a) approved and (b) rejected in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006 and (iii) 2007. [321173]
Mr. Kevan Jones [holding answer 8 March 2010] : The number of approved applications to extend service beyond the age of 55 with the Home Service Battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment in each of the specified years was as follows:
| Number of approved applications | |
| (1) Denotes fewer than five but more than zero Note: All figures have been rounded to the nearest five. | |
Since the disbandment of the Home Service Battalions of the Royal Irish Regiment, the number of rejected applications is no longer held.
World War II: Memorials
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if his Department will take steps to commemorate those who died on RMS Lancastria, on the 70th anniversary of the sinking of the ship on 17 June 1940. [320863]
Mr. Kevan Jones: Each year the whole country pauses in reflection and remembrance of the sacrifice and loss of life for all those who have died as a result of conflict. This includes all of those service personnel and civilians who perished on RMS Lancastria on 17 June 1940.
The Ministry of Defence has no current plans to commemorate the 70th anniversary. However, during the Merchant Navy Day Commemorative Service due to coincide with the anniversary on 17 June 2010 in Trinity Gardens, Tower Hill, London, particular attention will be given to marking the loss of the many lives on board RMS Lancastria.
Culture, Media and Sport
Bletchley Park Museum
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding was allocated to the Bletchley Park Museum in each of the last 10 years. [318075]
Margaret Hodge: The Bletchley Park Trust received a development grant of £460,500 from the Heritage Lottery Fund in 2009, primarily to support the development and improvement of the Bletchley Park Museum.
Additionally the Bletchley site has benefited from an English Heritage grant of £330,000 in 2008 towards repairs to the roof of the main mansion building.
Cricket: Finance
Mr. Simon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will assess the effect on revenues of grass-roots cricket clubs of the inclusion of the Ashes in the list of group A and B sporting events to be covered on terrestrial television. [320950]
Mr. Bradshaw: Any decision about which sporting events should be listed will take account of the possible impact on the finance of sporting bodies, including grassroots community sports, and on affected broadcasters.
I will consider this matter fully in light of all the material and views that will be generated by the consultation process which ends on 19 March.
Culture: Finance
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding has been allocated to his Department's Rewired Culture event on 27 March 2010; and how much such funding had been spent on the latest date for which figures are available. [319029]
Margaret Hodge [holding answer 1 March 2010]: The Rewired Culture event and a publication on digitisation for the cultural sector have an indicative budget of £15,000.
Departmental Databases
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost of installing the Human Resources Information System (Oracle) in his Department has been to date. [320812] [Official Report, 30 March 2010, Vol. 508, c. 9MC.]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Since October 2008, the cost of installing the Oracle Human Resources Information System in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has been £544,563.26.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much his Department has spent on external consultants in respect of the Human Resources Information System (Oracle) to date. [320813] [Official Report, 30 March 2010, Vol. 508, c. 10MC.]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Since October 2008, my Department has spent £294,849.19 on external consultants in respect of the Human Resources Information Systems (Oracle).
Departmental Location
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much his Department spent on the relocation of staff from posts in (a) Essex and (b) Castle Point constituency in each of the last five years. [321433]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not spent any money on the relocation of staff from posts in either Essex or Castle Point in the last five years.
Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisers
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many full-time equivalent staff of each grade are employed by his Department to assist special advisers. [321132]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport employs one full-time equivalent at civil service grade executive officer to assist two special advisers.
Departmental Public Consultation
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much his Department spent on (a) written consultation, (b) consultation road shows and (c) focus groups in each of the last three years. [319762]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information for departmental spend on written consultations specifically is not held centrally. There have been no consultation road shows in the last three years. For the last three full financial years, the focus groups spend for the Department is in the table. All consultations are published on the Department's website:
| Financial year | Departmental focus group spend (£) |
Other research commissioned is likely to have included a focus group element but it is not possible to determine the costs of these elements.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |