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Middle East: Forces Build-up
Lord Kennet asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What is the planned build-up in the number of British and American forces in the next few months in the Middle East, to which the British Ambassador to Kuwait was reported by the Kuna News Agency to have referred on 1st December 1996.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Earl Howe): I have not seen the report by the Kuna News Agency, but I believe that it may well have been referring to an interview in which
the Ambassador was specifically asked to comment on the build-up of forces following events in northern Iraq in September, when the United States deployed additional forces to the region. As far as the United Kingdom is concerned, no additional forces were deployed to the region at that time, but a Carrier Task Group visited the Gulf in November on a routine deployment. We continue to keep force levels in the region under review and would increase them if there were deemed to be a need to do so.Defence Spending
Lord Williams of Elvel asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What, on a statistically uniform basis, has been the decline in defence spending in real terms per annum between 1993-94 and 1995-96, and what is the expected outturn on the same basis for 1996-97 and 1997-98.
Earl Howe: The defence budget at 1995-96 prices, for the years in question, is as follows:
| 1993-94 outturn | 1994-95 outturn | 1995-96 outturn | 1996-97 estimated outturn | 1997-98 plans | |
| £ million | 23,746 | 23,133 | 21,517 | 21,268 | 20,876 |
The estimated outturn for 1996-97 is understated because of the distorting effect of the Winter and Spring Supplementary Estimates, under which additions to the Defence Budget totalling £304 million
were funded by the appropriation of receipts from the sale of the married quarter estate. Without this distorting effect the run of figures would be:| 1993-94 outturn | 1994-95 outturn | 1995-96 outturn | 1996-97 estimated outturn | 1997-98 plans | |
| £ million | 23,746 | 23,133 | 21,517 | 21,565 | 20,876 |
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