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5 Feb 2009 : Column WA137
Written Answers
Thursday 5 February 2009
Armed Forces: Equipment
Questions
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Clansman radio system has been fully replaced in the British Armed Forces with Bowman equipment; and, if not, when that replacement will be completed. [HL877]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Taylor of Bolton): The Regular element of the Armed Forces and Territorial Army units with an operational role have been converted from Clansman to Bowman while other lower priority units have retained Clansman as a temporary measure, in order to sustain low-level training and core skills. On current plans, it is intended that Bowman will have fully replaced Clansman by the end of 2011.
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the operational capability of Bowman equipment in Afghanistan. [HL878]
Baroness Taylor of Bolton: Bowman has proved to be very capable and a vast improvement over the family of Clansman radios it has replaced. In the challenging terrain and conditions of Afghanistan, Bowman is providing secure voice communications between widespread units across the country. This is an enhanced capability over that provided by Clansman.
To ask Her Majesty's Government what the weight is of the portable Bowman VHF pack, including batteries; and whether there are plans to reduce it. [HL880]
Baroness Taylor of Bolton: There are two primary types of in-service very high frequency (VHF) Bowman portable radio. The MoD designation PRC 354, including battery, has a total weight of 3.38 kg. The PRC 355, including battery, has a total weight of 4.88 kg, excluding headset.
There are no plans to reduce the weight of the radios or indeed the batteries, as there are currently no suitable lighter alternatives. Work to improve battery performance is, however, continuing. Whilst future batteries are unlikely to weigh less than their current counterparts, their improved performance should mean that fewer spare batteries are required, thus reducing the overall weight carried.
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To ask Her Majesty's Government whether General Dynamics have a contract for the supply of Bowman radio equipment to the British Armed Forces; and how much has been paid so far to General Dynamics for that contract. [HL881]
Baroness Taylor of Bolton: Yes, the department does have a contract with General Dynamics UK Ltd for the supply of Bowman communications capability, which includes the supply of radio equipment. Payments to the Bowman prime contractor under this contract up to December 2008 were £2,181 million. These payments cover the cost of Bowman and of the integrated Combat Infrastructure Platform BISA (BCIP) equipment.
To ask Her Majesty's Government what has been the cost to public funds over each of the past 10 years of the procurement of the Bowman radio system for the British Armed Forces. [HL882]
Baroness Taylor of Bolton: The procurement cost of the Bowman radio system falls within two distinct time periods. Expenditure during the period 1997 to 2000, when the ARCHER Joint Venture Company held preferred supplier status, was £397 million. Following re-competition, the Bowman contract was awarded to General Dynamics (UK), in 2001. Expenditure, including on emerging requirements to 31 March 2008, is £2,195 million broken down into the following years:
Banking
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures they will introduce to restore confidence in joint-stock banks, in the light of developments in financial markets since 19 January. [HL984]
The Financial Services Secretary to the Treasury (Lord Myners): In addition to decisive actions taken last October, on 19 January the Government announced further measures designed to reinforce the stability of the financial system, to increase confidence and capacity to lend and, in turn, to support the recovery of the economy. The Government are now working to implement these schemes and will monitor the impact of these measures. The Government will publish further details of the asset protection scheme by the last week of February. The Government will do whatever it takes to maintain financial stability.
5 Feb 2009 : Column WA139
Banking: Northern Rock
Question
Asked by Lord James of Blackheath
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the decision to allow Northern Rock to resume active mortgage lending will affect the previous consent of the European Community to the rescue of the bank under its competition rules. [HL963]
The Financial Services Secretary to the Treasury (Lord Myners): Treasury officials have been in close contact with the European Commission with regard to Northern Rock's business plan. The previous consent of the European Commission to the rescue of the bank under its competition rules continues.
Belfast Agreement
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what official term they use to refer to the agreement of April 1998 in Belfast which concerned the affairs of Northern Ireland. [HL964]
Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: The official term used to refer to this agreement is "The Belfast Agreement". However, given the wide use of the term "Good Friday Agreement", both terms are sometimes used to describe the same agreement. It was laid before Parliament as Command Paper 3883.
Businesses
Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many new small and medium-sized businesses have been registered in the past 12 months; and how that figure compares with the past five years. [HL986]
Lord Patel of Bradford: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply to the noble Lord. A copy of its response will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, National Statistician and Registrar General, to Lord Chadlington dated January 2009.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many new small and medium-sized businesses have been registered in the last 12 months; and how that figure compares with the last five years (HL986).
Annual statistics on births, deaths and survivals of businesses are available from the ONS Business Demography publication. Separate estimates for small and medium-sized businesses are not available prior to 2007. The tables below contain the latest annual estimates.
5 Feb 2009 : Column WA140
www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product. asp9vlnk=15186
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
Question
Asked by Baroness Finlay of Llandaff
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many fatalities from carbon monoxide poisoning have occurred in each year since 2000; and, of those, how many had previously presented with symptoms that could have suggested chronic carbon monoxide poisoning. [HL1130]
Lord Patel of Bradford: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply to the noble Baroness. A copy of its response will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, National Statistician and Registrar General, to Baroness Finlay, dated February 2009.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many fatalities from carbon monoxide poisoning have occurred in each year since 2000; and, of those, how many had previously presented with symptoms that could have suggested chronic carbon monoxide poisoning. (HL 1130)
The attached table provides the number of deaths where the toxic effect of carbon monoxide was the cause of death, from 2000 to 2007 (the latest year available). Figures are broken down by intent, as shown by the coroner’s verdict.
It is not possible to present figures on how many of these fatalities had previously presented with symptoms that could have suggested chronic carbon monoxide poisoning, as information recorded at death registration does not include the previous medical history of the deceased.
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Table 1: Number of deaths with a cause of carbon monoxide poisoning, by intent1, England and Wales 2 2000 to 20073 Deaths (persons) | |||||
| Year | Homicide | Suicide | Undetermined | Unintentional | Total |
- 1Cause of death from carbon monoxide poisoning was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) code 986 for the year 2000 and Tenth Revision (ICD-10) code T58 for the years 2001 to 2007, where these codes appeared as the secondary cause. Intent was defined using the ICD-9 and ICD-10 codes shown in the box below, where these codes appeared as the underlying cause.
| ICD-9 (2000) | ICD-10 (2001-2006) | ICD-10 (2007) | |
|
X85-Y09, U50.9 (previously coded as Y33.9, coroner’s verdict pending) | |||
|
X60-X84 , Y10-Y34 (excluding Y33.9, where coroner’s verdict pending) | |||
Children: Care
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