Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to support families impacted by the Chinook ZD576 crash.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence has supported families, and upheld our commitment to transparency and accountability, by fully cooperating with previous inquiries and investigations into this tragic accident. My noble friend Lord Coaker has written to the Chinook Justice Campaign inviting family members to meet with him before the end of the year.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will meet with the families impacted by the Chinook ZD576 crash.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
I can confirm that my noble friend the Lord Coaker has written to the Chinook Justice Campaign inviting representatives to meet with him before the end of the year.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will undertake a full review of the (a) technical, (b) legal and (c) regulatory failures that led to the Chinook ZD576 crash.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Mull of Kintyre crash of 1994 has been extensively investigated, including in two independent, judge-led processes, and in independent inquiries by House of Commons and House of Lords select committees, as well as the original Royal Air Force Board of Inquiry, including a report by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch. The Department has received a formal claim for a Judicial Review of our decision to reject the demand for a further Judge-led inquiry into the circumstances of the crash from the Chinook Justice Campaign and we are committed to engaging fully with this process.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of an increase in the use of satellites on GPS disruption.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Defence continually assesses the potential impacts of disruption to Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), including the US Global Positioning System (GPS), on Defence activities.
Defence is taking steps to bolster the resilience of our positioning, navigation and timing capabilities through technology fusion and increasing co-operation with relevant partners. This includes close engagement with the Department of Science Innovation and Technology and our allies to examine mitigations and alternatives across this field.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the expected return on investment for investments in Eutelsat OneWeb.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK Government's stake in Eutelsat and OneWeb supports UK strategic security and resilience in Low Earth Orbit satellite communications, helps drive UK-developed technology and space sector growth, increases global diversity in the market, and enhances UK-France security and defence collaboration. These benefits are expected to enhance the Ministry of Defence’s future deployed operations.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has paid to Eutelsat OneWeb in each of the last six years.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The primary spend with Eutelsat OneWeb has been on test and trial activity related to assessing the Company’s service offerings in support of Defence’s Satellite Communications. The spend is shown in financial years, with the current fiscal year including an element that is projected spend. The Ministry of Defence’s procurement of OneWeb services is expected to increase from financial year (FY) 2026.
FY 2025-26 £1.7 million
FY 2024-25 £72,000
FY 2023-24 £222,000
FY 2022-23 £100,000
No spend prior to April 2022
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had recent discussions with his Spanish counterpart on allowing UK military aircraft (a) arriving at and (b) departing from Gibraltar to use Spanish airspace.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Defence Secretary meets regularly with his Spanish counterpart to discuss a range of issues of shared strategic interest. These recent interactions have not included discussion on the transit through Spanish airspace of UK military aircraft arriving at or departing from RAF Gibraltar.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the restrictions on British military aircrafts (a) arriving at and (b) departing from Gibraltar on (i) military operations and (ii) financial costs to his Department.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
UK military aircraft travelling to and from RAF Gibraltar are routed so as to avoid Spanish territorial airspace, in accordance with Spanish restrictions on UK military overflights. RAF Gibraltar continues to operate as a sovereign UK military airfield, and the current overflight ban by Spain does not impede our operational freedom with respect to aircraft movements. No assessment has been conducted regarding the financial costs associated with routing UK military aircraft through the global network of Flight Information Regions.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress his Department has made on negotiating the UK's participation in the EU’s European Peace Facility.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The UK agreed an ambitious Security and Defence Partnership (SDP) with the EU to strengthen European security, support growth and reinforce NATO. As work progresses to implement the SDP, including the first UK-EU Foreign and Security Policy dialogue on 22 October, the UK will continue to prioritise engagement and cooperation on the issues that are most important in helping to safeguard European security and prosperity – all in support of this government’s NATO first defence policy as set out in the Security and Defence Review. The UK is not currently exploring participation in the European Peace Facility.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of launching a home readiness campaign to advise people on how to respond in the event of a potential conflict.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
As set out in the Strategic Defence Review, a whole-of-society approach is crucial to strengthen resilience to the risks we face, including hybrid threats.
The Cabinet Office-led Home Defence Programme will work to familiarise the public with their role in national security and resilience.
The Ministry of Defence will actively support this work and is committed to learning from international best practice.
The GOV.UK/Prepare website sets out actions the public can take to prepare for emergencies.