Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of when the review of applications to the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy that were made by people who supported UK Special Forces in Afghanistan will be completed.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The reassessment began on 26 March 2024 and will take approximately twelve weeks to complete. Some complex cases might extend beyond the 12 weeks.
I will update the House once the review is completed, but my immediate priority is processing the cases as swiftly and diligently as possible and ensuring that the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme criteria is consistently applied to all applications being reassessed.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what criteria he uses to determine whether to hold a vote in Parliament on (a) military action and (b) the deployment of defence operations in the Middle East.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Publicising operational activity to Parliament in advance could undermine operational effectiveness and potentially risk the lives of Armed Forces personnel involved. The deployment of the Armed Forces is a prerogative power, and the Government is under no legal obligation to seek Parliamentary approval. However, the Prime Minister and Government Ministers consistently update Parliament through written and oral statements, also through Oral and Topical questions.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the agreement between the UK and Ukraine on cooperation on defence and industrial issues on 10 April 2024.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government do not intend to publish the Defence Material Cooperation Framework Arrangement, signed by the UK and Ukraine 10 April 2024, as the publication of this document could prejudice commercial interests, operational security and international relations.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by The Earl of Minto on 3 April (HL3349), whether the numbers of maintenance and other personnel for each squadron will be based on the assumption that squadrons normally comprise 24 aircraft.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As referenced during the Oral Question asked on the 11 March 2024 regarding 809 Squadron, The numbers of personnel assigned to each Squadron is based on being established for up to 12 aircraft.
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 April 2024 to Question 21043 on Afghanistan: Refugees, in how many and what proportion of reassessed ARAP applications has the applicant been assessed as being eligible for relocation.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The reassessment of applications from those with credible links to former Afghan specialist units began on March 26 and I can confirm that overturned decisions have already been communicated to applicants.
As I stated in my answer to Question 21043, my immediate priority is to process all cases as diligently and swiftly as is possible. I will update the House once the review is completed.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships and vessels the Royal Navy currently has that are (1) operational, or (2) in reserve.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ships are adjusted to reflect operational requirements and to ensure outputs are optimised. Individual ships will be generated to different levels of readiness as required.
The information requested is as follows and is accurate as of 19 April 2024. ‘Available’ is defined as ships not undergoing deep maintenance or preparing to undergo deep maintenance.
Class | Not Available | Available | Total |
RFA Tide Class Tanker | 2 | 2 | 4 |
RFA Wave Class Tanker | 2 | 0 | 2 |
RFA Landing Ship Dock (Auxiliary) | 0 | 3 | 3 |
RFA Primary Casualty Reception Facility | 0 | 1 | 1 |
RFA Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment | 1 | 0 | 1 |
RFA Offshore Support Vessel | 0 | 2 | 2 |
The normal operating cycle of every ship involves them entering different readiness levels depending on their programmes, periods of refit and Departmental Planning Requirements. To Maintain operational security, these figures cannot be broken down into any further level of detail, however, I can confirm that these figures do include the new RFA Offshore Support Vessel Class.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of the upkeep of Type 23 Frigates in the 2024-25 financial year.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Type 23 Frigates undergo a planned series of Upkeep periods in order to maintain their condition and introduce capability updates. A total sum of £99.8 million has been allocated for financial year 2024-25, as part of a 10-year allocation.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress has been made on the E7 Wedgetail project.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The E-7 Wedgetail Programme submitted its Full Business Case as planned in March 2024 which will target an approval in 2024. The modification of the three E-7 Wedgetail aircraft continues at STS Aviation, Birmingham Airport, targeting an In-Service Date with the RAF in 2025.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much and what proportion of his Department's budget for research and development has not been allocated.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
All R&D funding is allocated to Top Level Budgets (TLBs) as part of the annual budget cycle. At the start of this financial year, 25% of R&D spending is currently committed, with the remainder uncommitted to enable flexibility and for budget holders to invest strategically in key programmes. This is consistent with the approach taken over previous three years, where all R&D funding has been committed by the end of each financial year.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress has been made on the Fleet Solid Support Ship project.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The production of the first Fleet Solid Support (FSS) ship is expected to begin in 2025. Progress continues on design work, mobilisation of the supply chain and recapitalisation of the facilities at Harland & Wolff.