Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has for his Department's site at Dunmore in Belfast.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Reserve Forces and Cadets Association Estate Optimisation Programme is an ongoing joint programme to optimise and improve the defence volunteer estate. This includes the Reserve Estate in Northern Ireland and the use of Army Reserve Centre Dunmore. No decisions have yet been taken.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for the defence industry in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK Government, through the Strategic Defence Review will make defence an engine for growth ensuring that our defence spending boosting prosperity, jobs and security for working people across all nations and regions. This includes in Northern Ireland, where companies like Thales are at the forefront of both advanced manufacturing and our enduring support to Ukraine. In March, we announced a £1.6 billion deal to supply thousands of advanced air defence missiles to Ukraine, whilst creating 200 new jobs in Northern Ireland. It is the largest contract ever received by Thales in Belfast. We are committed to working with the Northern Ireland Executive to ensure that we have a thriving defence sector which supports jobs, skills and growth in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of supporting a public inquiry into the 1994 Chinook Helicopter Crash on the Mull of Kintyre.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
I want to extend my sympathies to the families of those killed in this tragic accident. Having lost personnel on operations myself, I know the pain that they feel.
We have received a pre-action protocol letter from the Chinook Justice Campaign and are considering our response. It would therefore be inappropriate to comment further.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions his Department has had with the families of people killed in the 1994 Chinook Helicopter Crash on the Mull of Kintyre.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Mull of Kintyre crash was a tragic accident and our thoughts and sympathies remain with the families, friends and colleagues of all those who died.
The Chinook Justice Campaign, who represent many of the families of the Mull of Kintyre accident, have indicated their intention to bring legal proceedings against the Ministry of Defence. Given this ongoing situation, I am unable to comment further.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's budget is for armed forces (a) uniforms and (b) protective clothing in the 2024-25 financial year; and what the value is of orders placed with companies in Northern Ireland to provide (i) uniforms and (ii) protective equipment for the armed forces in the same period.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Logistics Commodities and Services Transformation (LCST) budget for all Clothing Raw Materials and Consumables purchases in the 2024-25 financial year (FY) is £79.839 million.
The value of orders placed with companies based in Northern Ireland for FY 2024-25 to date totals £16,441,905. We are forecast to spend an additional £11,755,371 for the remainder of the FY2024-25.
It has not been possible to identify which items are classed as uniform or which are protective clothing within the timeframe permitted.
Notes:
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the application process for Veteran's ID cards for those who left the armed forces prior to 2018 will be introduced.
Answered by Andrew Murrison
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 31 October 2022 to Question 68602 to the hon. Member for Warrington North (Charlotte Nichols).
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish an update on the outcome of the Rented Living Accommodation Project tender.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
As the Rented Living Accommodation Project Tender is still an ongoing procurement, we are unable to provide any detail on the possible outcomes or next steps as to do so would prejudice our commercial position.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made of the award of the tender for the Queen Elizabeth Class dry dock contract.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Ministry of Defence is currently conducting a commercial competition for Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carrier dry-docking periods, with work ongoing to identify a preferred bidder. This process is expected to conclude in early 2022, with the first dry-docking period planned for 2023.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department is making on the awarding of the contract for the Fleet Solid Support ships.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the right hon. Member for Warley (John Spellar), on 16 April 2021, in response to Question number 174726.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department spent on (a) items of clothing, (b) uniform and (c) personal protective clothing in each year since 2015.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Ministry of Defence has a number of contracts for clothing, uniforms and personal protective clothing with a number of suppliers, but also procures items through local procurement arrangements. Details of the spend on items of clothing, uniform and personal protective clothing in each year since 2015 are not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.