Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many surplus ration packs have been distributed to charitable organisations helping homeless people in (a) Wirral and (b) the UK.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Arrangements are in place for the distribution of surplus Ministry of Defence (MOD) 10-Man Ration packs through FareShare (a UK food charity). However, since initiating the agreement with FareShare on 1 April 2019, due to effective MOD stock management, no 10-Man Ration packs have become available for gifting.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the outcome of the 2019-20 pay settlement for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary merchant seafarers.
Answered by Johnny Mercer
The 2019-20 pay settlement for Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) personnel has not yet been agreed. Ministry of Defence officials continue to work on a pay proposal for the RFA for 2019-20 based on Public Sector Pay Award Guidelines that were published by Her Majesty's Treasury on 13 June 2019.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the timetable is for a decision to be made on the successful bidder to fulfil the new Type 31e frigates order.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
I refer the hon. Member to the answer he was given by my predecessor (Stuart Andrew MP) on 13 May 2019 to Question 251904.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the timescale is for the bidding process for the Type 31e frigates.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
It remains our intention to award a single Design and Build contract for five Type 31e Frigates by the end of 2019.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if she will undertake a review the pay settlement for civilian seafarer Ratings working in the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
All Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) personnel are civilian Ministry of Defence employees and are therefore subject to HM Treasury Civil Servant Pay Guidance. As a result the pay award for RFA personnel for 2018-19 was 1.5% and there are no plans to review this settlement.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he will match the commitment made by his Department to staff based in London by setting the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation as a minimum hourly rate for staff based outside London.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has not formally signed up to the National Living Wage rates, as defined by the Living Wage Foundation. While the Secretary of State exceptionally agreed as part of the 2015 pay deal to match the Living Wage Foundation's London Living Wage rate, this did not extend to other staff as the levels of pay for staff outside London were considered appropriate. The Department continues to review all salaries and the position taken in 2015 has not changed.
I can confirm that the MOD continues to pay above the Government's National Living Wage and that arrangements are in place to increase salaries when the hourly rate announced by the Chancellor in his November 2018 Autumn Statement is increased to £8.21 with effect from 1 April 2019.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times his Department, excluding executive agencies and non-ministerial departments, was taken to an employment tribunal for disability discrimination in 2017-18.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Between 1 April 2017 and 31 March 2018 the Department, excluding executive agencies and non-ministerial departments, was taken to an employment tribunal for disability discrimination four times.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which service providers are contracted to carry out third party cleaning contracts for his (a) Department and (b) executive agencies; if he will list all of the services delivered by third party contractors to his (i) Department and (ii) executive agencies; and how many people working for those third party contractors are paid less than the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.g Wage Foundation.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
This question is interpreted as pertaining to those third-party contractors operating in the UK under UK law.
The service providers who are contracted to carry out third party cleaning contracts for the Ministry of Defence (MOD) are Aramark Defence Services, Compass Contract Services (UK) Ltd and Sodexo.
The service providers who are contracted to carry out third party cleaning contracts for Executive Agencies are EMCOR UK and Amey Community (Defence) Services.
The list of all (cleaning) services delivered by third party contractors for the MOD on behalf of the Department are as follows:
Common Services:
Medical/Healthcare Cleaning:
Domestic Assistance – Provision of cleaning service to entitled officers
The list of all (cleaning) services delivered by third party contractors for Executive Agencies are as follows:
The Department does not hold information on how many people working for these contractors are paid rates recommended by the Living Wage Foundation. All of the employees of the above third-party contractors working in the Department or its Executive Agencies are required to be paid at a minimum, the national living wage or national minimum wage in accordance with statutory rights.
Asked by: Lord Field of Birkenhead (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on reviewing his Department's policy on redistributing surplus ration packs to people who are homeless.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister for Defence People and Veterans (Mr Ellwood) on 11 October 2018 to Question 175981.