Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they consulted the government of United States before closing the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) was a scheme developed by the UK Government to provide support to our Afghan Partners and allies. As such, the decision to close ARAP to new principal applications was taken by the UK Government.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish an impact assessment on closing the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence has considered the impact of closing the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme (ARAP). The scheme was in operation for four years and had received over 190,000 applications. Over the duration of the scheme, over 95% of total applications have been found ineligible.
It is now considered that most of those who wished to apply for ARAP and would likely be eligible, will have already applied. ARAP has therefore fulfilled its purpose. The Department is not intending to publish an impact assessment.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will publish a list of (1) departments, (2) agencies, (3) non-departmental public bodies, and (4) devolved administrations, they consulted prior to the decision to close the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme is administered by the Ministry of Defence, and the decision to close ARAP to new applications was taken following consultation with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Home Office, His Majesty’s Treasury and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Other agencies were first informed of the intent to bring Afghan schemes to a close in the Defence Secretary’s Written Ministerial Statement in the House of Commons in December 2024.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether Afghans who worked directly with UK forces and their families and who live in Afghanistan or Pakistan will have a pathway to settle in the UK following the decision to close the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Afghan nationals who wish to come to the UK can still make an application to the Home Office under the most suitable route within the Immigration Rules. Any such application would need to demonstrate that the applicant meets the relevant requirements for that route, including payment of any applicable fees.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the advertisement of the Defence Infrastructure Organisation Head of People Development and Culture, what is the business justification for the salary, and how recruitment into that job role will benefit the Ministry of Defence.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The salary for the role of Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) Head of People Development and Culture is determined by the established banding within Defence. The grade is defined by the responsibilities of the position and level of experience needed to successfully deliver in role.
This role is aligned with Defence Reform initiatives, particularly in transforming culture across the organisation, with DIO playing a key role. Attracting the right leaders into the right positions is essential for building capability within Defence. In doing so, we foster the right culture and behaviours ensuring we develop a workforce equipped with the professional expertise needed for the future.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Collins of Highbury on 25 February (HL5027), whether any of the Army, the Royal Navy, or the Royal Airforce are paid members or affiliates of Stonewall.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I can confirm that neither the Royal Navy, the Army, nor the Royal Air Force are paid members or affiliates of Stonewall.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Coaker on 5 December (HL1878) and the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office on 12 February (HC28577), whether they have decided to discontinue the review on equality, diversity and inclusion training in the Armed Forces.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave him on 19 December 2024, to Question HL3228, in which I stated that following the review into Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), Defence has accelerated work to restructure and consolidate its staff networks into a smaller number, is conducting an audit of our training programmes to ensure that they deliver high-quality, valuable content, and will ensure that future partnerships and consultancy spend on EDI projects have a clearer focus on return on investment.
The Ministry of Defence remains committed to making the step changes required to create a more inclusive environment, enabling everyone, irrespective of background, to deliver our Defence outputs and enhance our operational effectiveness.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Coaker on 5 December (HL1878), what steps they are taking consequent upon the Ministry of Defence review into equality, diversity and inclusion.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Following the review into Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), Defence has accelerated work to restructure and consolidate its staff networks into a smaller number, is conducting an audit of our training programmes to ensure that they deliver high-quality, valuable content, and will ensure that future partnerships and consultancy spend on EDI projects have a clearer focus on return on investment.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current status of their review into equality, diversity and inclusion spending in the Armed Forces.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Following the change in Government the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) Permanent Secretary directed that the review into equality, diversity and inclusion spending in the Armed Forces should not be staffed to the new Ministerial team. The MOD continues to implement actions from the review that were previously endorsed by the MOD’s People Committee.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that agreements on defence and security collaboration between the UK and the EU made under the Permanent Structured Cooperation regime are subject to appropriate and timely scrutiny by Parliament.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Shadow Minister (Defence)
The UK's interest in the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) military mobility project was discussed in the House of Commons debate on 19 May 2022, at a Commons Defence Committee evidence session on 2 November 2022. Leo Docherty MP, Minister for Europe, also discussed PESCO military mobility at two Lords European Affairs Committee evidence sessions on 7 March and 12 December 2023.
The Commons European Scrutiny Committee has also opened an inquiry into 'PESCO and UK-EU Defence Cooperation' to which HMG submitted written evidence in July 2023.