Management of Unsolicited Mail at Christmas
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 5 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
I wish to inform the House about the annual unsolicited mail campaign the Ministry of Defence (MOD) will be running in the lead-up to Christmas, which is 100 days from tomorrow.
This Government are dedicated to the care and welfare of the men and women of our armed forces, particularly those deployed on operations. This is reflected in the comprehensive Deployed Welfare Package which is constantly reviewed to ensure we give appropriate support to our deployed service personnel. A key part of that package is ensuring the safe and timely delivery of free personal mail from family and friends. In the past this mechanism has also been used by the general public to show their support by sending unsolicited goodwill parcels through the mail system.
Previously, this has resulted in huge volumes of unsolicited goodwill parcels which have overwhelmed the in-theatre postal and logistic capacity, resulting in a considerable delay to personal mail from family and friends. British Forces’ Post Office (BFPO) estimates it will handle approximately 22,500 parcels per week over Christmas this year (the eight-week period between mid-October and mid-December) as opposed to 10,000 over a “normal” eight-week period. In 2009, unsolicited mail added 64 tonnes to BFPO’s logistical effort. In addition to the impact on personal mail, which can be severely delayed as a result, delivering unsolicited packages over the “final mile” to forward operating bases and patrol bases puts increased pressure on essential in-theatre resources. Additional helicopter journeys and road convoys are required, both of which take essential transport assets away from their primary task and place our personnel at increased personal danger.
It is for these reasons that the MOD will, for the fourth consecutive year, be repeating its unsolicited mail campaign. The campaign was so successful last year it reduced the volume of unsolicited mail by 90%. Key to the success of the campaign is to encourage the British public to show their support through one of the recognised MOD service charities rather then sending unsolicited goodwill parcels.
All service personnel on operations over Christmas will receive a seasonal gift box from the MOD-endorsed charity, “uk4u Thanks!”. The charity continues to work closely with the MOD, using free space in the existing supply chain to deliver the boxes well before Christmas, without impacting on the normal mail system. Other charities which help to support deployed troops with welfare items include SSAFA, Afghan Heroes, Support our Soldiers and Thank the Forces.
I recognise that it might seem counter-intuitive to ask the British public not to send parcels to troops at Christmas, but due to the impact of unsolicited mail I ask for your full support in directing the public towards MOD-recognised charities.
Service Voter Registration
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 5 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
I have today placed in the Library of the House a copy of the report of a survey on service voter registration levels in 2010 conducted by Defence Analytical Services and Advice in January 2011. As in previous years the survey was conducted to provide an estimate of the numbers of armed forces personnel who are currently registered to vote, and to assess the success of our information campaign.
I welcome the survey. It indicates that 75% of service personnel are registered to vote, up from 69% in 2009 and 60% in 2005. This represents the highest level of service registration since I first raised the issue back in 2005. Of those registered in 2010, the majority (77%) chose to register as ordinary rather than service voters. The level of voters registered as overseas voters has remained at 1%.
We recognise that there is still work to be done. Alongside the challenges presented by service mobility and the high proportion of young personnel in our armed forces, the results of the survey will help to inform how and where we should best concentrate our efforts in the future. We continue to work closely with our colleagues in the Cabinet Office and the Electoral Commission to further improve the quality and timeliness of information available to our service personnel and their families. It remains our firm commitment to improve arrangements for the service community to enable them to play a full part in the electoral process.
Ofsted Report (Armed Forces Initial Training 2010-11)
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 5 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
Today Ofsted publishes its third report on welfare and duty of care in armed forces initial training, copies of which have been placed in the Library of the House. Following visits to 11 armed forces initial training establishments, Ofsted reports that recruits and trainees feel that their welfare needs are met and well supported.
The armed forces remain committed to ensuring that the training they provide is both efficient and effective, recognising the need to continuously evaluate what works well and areas that need improvement. Ofsted inspection suggests that review processes in training establishments are improving and in one location the overall effect is judged to be “outstanding”.
We need to continue to provide effective training in the face of resource and operational pressures, while providing a supportive training environment that enables instructors to bring out the best in young recruits and trainees without lessening the tough nature of armed forces training.
Defence
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 6 months ago)
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Mr Robathan
The Science Advisory Committee on the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (SACMILL) was approved as a non-departmental public body in June 2009 and will be established soon. It is expected to be established later this year and it will continue the work previously undertaken by the Defence Science Advisory Council Subcommittee on the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (DOMILL).
SACMILL’s purpose will be to provide: advice on the biophysical, biomechanical, pathological and clinical aspects of generic classes of Less Lethal Weapons; independent statements on the medical implications of use of specific Less Lethal Weapons; advice on the risk of injury from specific Less Lethal Weapons systems striking specific areas of the body in a format that will assist those responsible for developing policy and, separately, guidance to users, as well as operational users themselves in making tactical decisions.
As an advisory non-departmental public body it will advise Ministers, but not employ staff or incur expenditure on its own account. The Surgeon General will be a member of the Executive Committee and will provide the secretariat functions for the committee from existing full-time HQ Surgeon General Staff. In addition, the committee may draw on the pool of expertise found within the Ministry of Defence and other Government Departments for specific tasks.
The total cost to the Department for DOMILL legacy work undertaken during the financial year 2010-11 was £39,355.56, principally for travel and subsistence costs. Work is currently under way to finalise the tasking arrangements for the financial year 2011-12; a similar level of expenditure as the previous year is expected.
The correct answer should have been:
Mr Robathan
The Science Advisory Committee on the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (SACMILL) was approved as a non-departmental public body in June 2009 and will be established soon. It is expected to be established later this year and it will continue the work previously undertaken by the Defence Science Advisory Council Subcommittee on the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (DOMILL).
SACMILL’s purpose will be to provide: advice on the biophysical, biomechanical, pathological and clinical aspects of generic classes of Less Lethal Weapons; independent statements on the medical implications of use of specific Less Lethal Weapons; advice on the risk of injury from specific Less Lethal Weapons systems striking specific areas of the body in a format that will assist those responsible for developing policy and, separately, guidance to users, as well as operational users themselves in making tactical decisions.
As an advisory non-departmental public body it will advise Ministers, but not employ staff or incur expenditure on its own account. The Surgeon General will be a member of the Executive Committee and will provide the secretariat functions for the committee from existing full-time HQ Surgeon General Staff. In addition, the committee may draw on the pool of expertise found within the Ministry of Defence and other Government Departments for specific tasks.
The total cost to the Department for DOMILL legacy work undertaken during the financial year 2010-11 was £39,355.56, principally for Defence Science and Technology Laboratory daily rate staff costs. Work is currently under way to finalise the tasking arrangements for the financial year 2011-12; a similar level of expenditure as the previous year is expected.
Defence Vetting Agency
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 7 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
Key priorities have been set for the chief executive of the Defence Vetting Agency (DVA) for financial year 2011-12 to deliver national security vetting and related services for Defence personnel and for contractors working for the Ministry of Defence. Vetting for its repayment customers across Government will be delivered against standards set in individual joint business agreements with the agency.
Following Defence reform, it is likely that vetting services will be provided under a new business model from 2012, and I expect the DVA to be disestablished as a next steps agency from April 2012. The following key priorities are for its final year of operation. They also reflect the introduction in March 2011 of a major new vetting management and information system (Cerberus). As is common in such substantial transition programmes, short-term operating difficulties have been encountered. These are, however, being resolved, and the expected benefits should be delivered within the period covered by the key priorities.
Maintaining quality
Key priority 1: External validation of quality of defence vetting cases.
To achieve at least a 98% satisfaction rating with 200 cases independently selected and reviewed from a random sample of security cleared (SC) and developed vetting (DV) cases completed in the preceding 12-month period.
Key priority 2: Delivering excellent customer service to all our customers.
To maintain customer service excellence accreditation.
Restoring service delivery
Key priority 3: For all routine defence cases received after 1 January:
a. 85% of counter-terrorism checks (CTCs) to be completed within 25 calendar days,
(improved from 30 days);
b. 85% of SCs to be completed within 25 calendar days, (improved from 30 days);
c. 85% of DVs to be completed within 95 calendar days, (improved from 100 days).
Key priority 4: For all defence priority cases received after 1 October:
a. 95% of CTCs and SCs to be completed within 10 calendar days, (no change);
b. 95% of DVs completed within 30 calendar days .(no change).
Key priority 5: Completing defence aftercare cases received or scheduled for action after 1 October:
a. Take into action all aftercare incident reports (AIRs) within seven calendar days of receipt, (no change);
b. Take into action 95% of scheduled aftercare within 30 calendar days of the scheduled date of review, (no change)
c. Taking into action (where appropriate) 95% of security appraisal reviews within 21 days of receipt, (no change).
The above timeliness targets represent net performance that excludes delays outside of the DVA’s control.
Business Improvement
Key priority 6: Business transformation
By 30 September 2011 produce a transition plan to implement the move to the Defence Business Support Organisation during autumn 2011, and remove agency status by 31 March 2012 (new).
Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 7 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
Key priorities for 2011-12 have been set for the chief constable/chief executive of the Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency (MDPGA). These priorities are linked to the delivery of the agency’s key outputs of providing an effective policing and guarding service. In brief, the eight key priorities are:
Key Priority 1
To support the secure and uninterrupted operation of the UK’s nuclear deterrent
a. To retain substantial assurance from the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Strategic Weapons Project Team (SWPT) and DE&S Principal Security Adviser (PSyA) quality assurance inspection process.
b. To have delivered at least 98% of Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) and Ministry of Defence Guarding Service (MGS) agreed UK customer tasks at nuclear sites.
Key Priority 2
To support the defence main effort in Afghanistan
a. To have achieved 100% of Her Majesty’s Government/Ministry of Defence (MOD) approved requirements for Afghanistan national police capacity building.
b. To have 100% of all Defence community police officers (DCPO) positions occupied.
c. To assist the MOD in the detection and recovery of military materiel theft.
Key Priority 3
To ensure the protection of Defence people, assets, information and estate
a. To have delivered at least 95% of MDP and MGS agreed UK customer tasks at non-nuclear sites including MOD trading funds.
b. To assist the MOD in preventing and detecting fraud and corruption, and any subsequent recovery of losses.
c. To assist the MOD in the investigation of security and data loss.
Key Priority 4
To provide a response to Defence major incidents
a. To have passed the annual Nuclear Guard Force assessment.
b. To provide a police operational and major incident surge capability that meets the Department’s statement of requirement.
c. To achieve the MDP public order standard.
Key Priority 5
To meet the security requirements of all non-MOD repayment customers
To have delivered 100% of MDP and MGS agreed UK customer tasks at non-MOD payment sites.
Key Priority 6 -
To maintain MDP and MGS operational and professional standards
To have met and maintained 100% of MDP and MGS accreditation and compliance for:
a. MDPNet accreditation;
b. NPIA Firearms Training Licence;
c. MDP Level 2 Investigation Programme;
d. ACPO accreditation for Police Dog Training Instructors;
e. Information Assurance Maturity Model Level 3;
f. National Crime Recording Standards/Scottish Crime Recording Standards;
g. National Standard for Incident Recording;
h. Diversity through incorporation into the MOD’s new Equality Act framework.
External MGS accreditations for:
a. The National Security Industry Gold Standard;
b. Security Industry Authority Standard.
Key Priority 7
To ensure that the agency transition programme is on track
a. To have achieved 100% of agreed agency transition programme milestones for 2011-12.
b. To have achieved a “Your Say” engagement score that exceeds that of the central top level budget parent unit.
Key Priority 8
To ensure that the MPDGA delivers on budget
To deliver specified outputs within 1% of authorised control total.
Service Complaints Commissioner
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 7 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
I am pleased to place in the Library of the House the Ministry of Defence (MOD)’s formal response to the Service Complaints Commissioner (SCC)’s third annual report on the fairness, effectiveness and efficiency of the service complaints system.
The MOD and the services accept the SCC’s four new three-year goals, which are challenging but reasonable. The formal response sets out how we propose to address the SCC’s 20 new recommendations, including as part of the work that we are currently doing to review the complaints process as a whole.
Since the complaints process was introduced in January 2008, the MOD and the services have made considerable improvements to their management of complaints, drawing on the SCC’s valuable input as well as on lessons learned from their own experience of operating the system. While recognising that changes should be given the opportunity to bear fruit, we will maintain and build on the progress made to date to deliver a process that is as fair, effective and efficient as possible.
People, Pay and Pensions Agency
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 7 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
With effect from today, the People, Pay and Pensions Agency (PPPA) will cease to have the status of executive agency of the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
The People, Pay and Pensions Agency (PPPA) was formed in April 2006 to bring together civilian pay, pension and human resource (HR) services. The PPPA subsumed the Pay and Personnel Agency (PPA) and became the single provider of all corporate civilian personnel services to the MOD.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence, announced on 22 March 2011, Official Report, columns 49-50WS, the intention to establish the new Defence Business Services (DBS) organisation, bringing together the delivery of a range of corporate service functions to support all areas of the Department from one organisation. The DBS stood up on 1 July 2011 and the civilian HR function of the DBS provided by the PPPA has been renamed as DBS Civilian HR.
This change in operating status will have no impact on PPPA’s customers and will deliver efficiencies and wider savings to Government, in particular the costs incurred in auditing the agency’s annual report and accounts.
Oral Answers to Questions
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 7 months ago)
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Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) (Lab)
9. How much his Department spent on accommodation in London for military officers and staff of his Department in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
Over the last 12 months, the Ministry of Defence spent some £25 million on renting 3,000 service family accommodation properties and 1,000 substitute family and single accommodation properties in London for entitled service personnel. Substitute properties were rented only when no suitable MOD accommodation was available. We seek to get best value for money. Travel and subsistence payments for service and civilian personnel relating to short-term detached duty, permanent transfer, which involves move of home, or temporary transfer in London cannot be identified separately. However, for civilian personnel in London, the MOD imposes a monthly rental ceiling of £1,250. Personnel based in the London area are undertaking essential duties in a range of locations.
Mr Cunningham
Given the financial difficulties of the MOD and the worldwide economic situation that we inherited, the present Government have made the position worse. With all these defence cuts going on, particularly among specialist police in the MOD, how does the Minister justify spending £500,000 on a trip to America, which was cancelled last year?
Mr Robathan
I am not entirely sure how that question relates specifically to my previous answer, but I will of course answer it. As I understand it, the trip is part of the Defence Academy course, and 300 people went to America for a week or whatever. It seems to me that this is a reasonable use of defence expenditure to ensure that people are properly trained at the Defence Academy and that they gain a proper understanding of the United States, which is, after all, our most important ally, with which we are much engaged in Afghanistan at the moment.
Neil Carmichael (Stroud) (Con)
10. Whether he has discussed with ministerial colleagues the effectiveness of co-operation between French and UK armed forces; and if he will make a statement.
Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)
19. What recent representations he has received on arrangements for members of the public to pay final respects to fallen servicemen.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
Over the last two weeks we have received a number of e-mails and letters following a campaign on Facebook about arrangements for members of the public to pay their final respects to fallen servicemen and women.
Mark Pawsey
I recently spoke to a lady in my constituency who is a member of the War Widows Association. She expressed concern about the forthcoming change which would mean repatriation flights arriving at RAF Brize Norton. Like many other people, she believed that it was important for the British public to continue to be able to pay their respects to fallen military personnel. Will the Minister assure us that that will still be possible under the new arrangements?
Mr Robathan
I can certainly assure my hon. Friend and the House that that is the case.
Because of the number of e-mails that we had received, I went to Brize Norton on Friday to reassure myself about the plans that are being made. The RAF is spending £3.2 million on a new repatriation centre specifically for the families of the bereaved, who must be the focus of our attention. It is an excellent centre, which will give them a very good view of what is happening when the aircraft land. There are private chapels of rest where they can go and be with their loved one’s remains. The cortege will then head down a very dignified avenue of limes to the nearest gate, which is being refurbished and will be called the Britannia Gate. It is dignified, respectful and solemn.
Once the cortege has left Brize Norton, it will be the responsibility of the police and Oxfordshire county council. The county council is building a memorial garden with a great deal of car parking so that people who wish to show their respect—the general public and the Royal British Legion, which approved the arrangements—will be able to do so in a dignified and proper place.
Paul Flynn (Newport West) (Lab)
The Minister misses the point. As recently as 12 o’clock today a representative of the people of Brize Norton expressed his disappointment and anger, because they wish the very moving scenes that took place at Wootton Bassett to be replicated at Brize Norton. That cannot happen because the cortege route is being taken through rural roads and not through the urban area. Should not the people of Brize Norton and the surrounding areas have the right to express the grief of the nation, in order that we are all reminded of the true cost of war?
Mr Robathan
First, as I have said, the families of the bereaved must be the most important consideration. Oxfordshire county council has carried out a great deal of consultation. The hon. Gentleman mentions Brize Norton and, as it happens, the route will go straight through the village of Brize Norton. It will not go through the nearby village of Carterton, whose streets are both very narrow for a modern village and have speed bumps, which are not suitable for corteges. This has been decided by Oxfordshire county council in consultation with local people, and there is no suggestion of its having been done covertly. If I may say so, I think the hon. Gentleman should go to Brize Norton—as I did—and see the alternatives, as he would find that we wish to allow the British public the right to show their respect for these heroes, but we are not necessarily going to be driven by one person on the radio.
Mr James Gray (North Wiltshire) (Con)
There can be no finer sight than the last four Hercules from RAF Lyneham flying down the line of the high street of Wootton Bassett on Friday afternoon on the way to Brize Norton, but does the Minister agree that it might not be possible, nor indeed quite right, to seek to replicate the Wootton Bassett effect elsewhere, as that was a chapter in our history? I am not sure we necessarily want to see it repeated elsewhere.
Mr Robathan
My hon. Friend makes a very good point. The route from Lyneham to Oxford passes straight through the centre of Wootton Bassett, and the route from Brize Norton to Oxford is being drawn so that it can go past somewhere where people can pay their respects. As my hon. Friend will know, the facilities at RAF Lyneham were fairly ad hoc, but we have now built a repatriation centre which, I have to say, is very impressive. It will be finished at the end of July, and I think people will come to realise that this is a different situation, and that the RAF, Oxfordshire county council and the police are doing the right thing for the bereaved and the servicemen who have been killed.
Simon Kirby (Brighton, Kemptown) (Con)
T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.
Gemma Doyle (West Dunbartonshire) (Lab/Co-op)
The creation of the office of the chief coroner would make a significant difference to the families of fallen service people as they go through the very difficult inquest process. The Royal British Legion believes this is a matter of priority, not of cost. When will the Secretary of State stop passing the buck to his colleagues in the Justice Department and make this one of his priorities?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
As you will understand, Mr Speaker, this is not a question of passing the buck: the Ministry of Justice is responsible for the coroners department. This has been the subject of much consultation, and the MOJ must answer on it. [Interruption.] The right hon. Member for East Renfrewshire (Mr Murphy) asks what it is doing: it is ensuring that coroners are better trained, as training was the problem beforehand.
Jason McCartney (Colne Valley) (Con)
T2. Does my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State agree with me and the British Veterans National Defence Medal Campaign that the recent MOD medal review was wrong to suggest that there is little appetite or desire in this country to recognise our brave service veterans with a UK national defence medal?
Mr Robathan
I would not agree with my hon. Friend on that. What I would say is that groups such as the British Veterans National Defence Medal Campaign are being consulted on the medal review. What that campaign proposes would mean that some 4.5 million to 5 million people would qualify for a national defence medal, and we have to take into account all representations before determining whether that is the right thing to do.
Pamela Nash (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab)
T3. On 24 June, The Daily Telegraph reported that a £10 billion black hole in the defence budget will lead to cuts having to be increased beyond the current 8%. Can the Secretary of State confirm or deny that report?
Andrew Selous (South West Bedfordshire) (Con)
T9. What plans do the Government have to mark the 200th anniversary of the battle of Waterloo, which ended a quarter of a century of conflict in Europe and packed Napoleon off to St Helena?
Mr Robathan
My hon. Friend may know that I spent some 15 years in the Coldstream Guards and he will know—he has historical knowledge—that the Coldstream Guards shut the gates of the chateau, or the farm, of Hougoumont. Wellington said that the battle would have been lost had that not happened. Our relationship with France has changed a little since the Napoleonic wars, and this is now an historical matter. I understand that our colleagues in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport have set up a Waterloo 200 committee to discuss the commemoration, but it will certainly be commemorated by the Coldstream Guards, among others.
Jim McGovern (Dundee West) (Lab)
May I thank the Under-Secretary of State for Defence, the hon. Member for Mid Worcestershire (Peter Luff), for agreeing to meet me yesterday to discuss the potential implications of the SDSR on organisations that depend almost entirely on Ministry of Defence contracts for their survival? I was perhaps a tad parochial at that meeting in stating the case for the Remploy factory in my constituency. Is the Minister in a position to give any assurances and an update to the people employed at Remploy in Dundee West and to me?
Jim Sheridan (Paisley and Renfrewshire North) (Lab)
The Secretary of State may be aware of the excellent research carried out by Professor Al Rowland into the exposure of our atomic test veterans. Since conducting that research, Professor Rowland has been honoured by the Queen. The UK Government are now the only Government refusing to accept their responsibilities for Christmas island, so will the Secretary of State now agree to do so?
Mr Robathan
I do not entirely accept what the hon. Gentleman says, and I happen to know that neither do those on his party’s Front Bench. What happens in New Zealand is, of course, up to the people of New Zealand. However, I note from the article in The Times today, which he might have read, that Neil Sampson of Rosenblatt says that he wants a compensation fund worth £30 million to be set up. It should be asked of Rosenblatt—perhaps the hon. Gentleman himself might wish to ask this question—how much its fees are, because I understand that they would take up more than half that compensation fund, and would—I think everybody in the House would agree—therefore probably be a little large.
Sir Menzies Campbell (North East Fife) (LD)
My right hon. Friend will not be surprised to learn that RAF Leuchars in my constituency continues to fulfil its responsibilities for the air defence of the northern half of the United Kingdom with the professionalism and commitment that we have come to expect. Has he assessed the extent of the effect on the ability of Leuchars—or, indeed, of any other air base in Scotland—to operate if Scotland was not under the umbrella of NATO?
Armed Forces (Council Tax Relief)
Lord Robathan Excerpts(14 years, 7 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Andrew Robathan)
Further to the statement made by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence on 16 May 2011, Official Report, columns 25-27, regarding the armed forces covenant, I am today announcing the increase of the rate of council tax relief for service personnel deployed on specified operations overseas, from 25% to 50%, to commence from 1 July 2011. This further underlines our commitment to rebuilding the armed forces covenant, that unique bond between the armed forces, the Government and the nation.