Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on the Multi Role Support Ship programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave to questions 11950 and 11951 on 7 February 2024.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much funding has been (a) allocated and (b) spent on the Global Combat Air Programme Tempest programme as of 6 February 2024.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The March 2021 Defence Command Paper reaffirmed that that we will invest more than £2 billion in the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) out to 2025, and we have spent over £1.8 billion so far. This is part of a budget of over £12 billion over the next 10 years. The amount that we ultimately invest will be determined at future decision points.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Defence has invested over £1.1 billion in R&D through the Future Combat Air System Technology Initiative (FCAS TI), with a further £600 million from our Team Tempest industry partners to date.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned delivery dates are for (a) HMS Sheffield, (b) HMS Newcastle, (c) HMS Edinburgh and (d) HMS London.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Initial Operating Capability for the Type 26 Class is forecast to be October 2028. All ships are expected to enter service between 2028 and 2035.
To avoid compromising operational security, the Ministry of Defence does not routinely disclose individual out of service dates or specific delivery or in-service dates for warships to avoid revealing elements of the Fleet's long-term schedule. However, the Royal Navy continues to ensure that it has sufficient assets available to deliver operational outputs.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list the subcontractors involved in fabrication work on the Type 26 programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given to question 12598 on the 6 February 2024.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2024 to Question 9179 on HMS Prince of Wales, whether the Government of Malaysia has asked for technical support in the assessment and identification of potential human remains recovered from the wreck of HMS Prince of Wales through unauthorised salvage operations.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Investigations into the illegal salvage of HMS Prince of Wales are still ongoing, it would not be appropriate to provide a response regarding human remains and the Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre's involvement until these have concluded.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2024 to Question 9179 on HMS Prince of Wales, whether the Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre is involved in the assessment and identification of potential human remains recovered from the wreck of HMS Prince of Wales through unauthorised salvage operations.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Investigations into the illegal salvage of HMS Prince of Wales are still ongoing, it would not be appropriate to provide a response regarding human remains and the Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre's involvement until these have concluded.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department has had with BAE Systems on subcontractor work on the Type 26 programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
BAE Systems are responsible for managing their subcontractors on the Type 26 programme, which the Ministry of Defence oversees. The Department has regular reviews with BAE Systems where overall performance, including that of subcontractors, is discussed. At the present time, sub-contracted fabrication work is undertaken by Cammell Laird, A&P Tyne and Ferguson Marine.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Oral statement by the Minister for Defence People and Families of 13 December 2023 on the LGBT Veterans Independent Review, Official Report, column 904, what his assessment is of the difference between a (a) financial awards scheme and (b) compensation scheme.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence continues to work at pace with experts across Government and reference other schemes, such as the Canadian scheme, to establish an appropriate scheme for the financial award, working within the £50 million limit recommended in the independent review.
Defence is still considering how to best implement the recommendation; no specific decision has yet been taken about the mechanism for this, and development of the scheme is at an early stage. Defence cannot yet confirm the details, the expected number of claimants, its eligibility and application process, or the likely size of awards. However, the Government is committed to delivering the report’s recommendation, acknowledging that the process is intricate and must be followed correctly.
In the meantime, Defence will continue to engage with stakeholders, including LGBT veterans, as plans for the financial award progress and is committed to providing updates on the development of the scheme; eligibility criteria; and information on the application process on the ‘LGBT Veterans: support and next steps’ GOV.UK page as soon as possible: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/lgbt-veterans-support-and-next-steps
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish (a) eligibility and (b) application process information on how LGBT veterans can apply for a financial award, in the context of the LGBT Veterans Independent Review, published on 19 July 2023.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence continues to work at pace with experts across Government and reference other schemes, such as the Canadian scheme, to establish an appropriate scheme for the financial award, working within the £50 million limit recommended in the independent review.
Defence is still considering how to best implement the recommendation; no specific decision has yet been taken about the mechanism for this, and development of the scheme is at an early stage. Defence cannot yet confirm the details, the expected number of claimants, its eligibility and application process, or the likely size of awards. However, the Government is committed to delivering the report’s recommendation, acknowledging that the process is intricate and must be followed correctly.
In the meantime, Defence will continue to engage with stakeholders, including LGBT veterans, as plans for the financial award progress and is committed to providing updates on the development of the scheme; eligibility criteria; and information on the application process on the ‘LGBT Veterans: support and next steps’ GOV.UK page as soon as possible: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/lgbt-veterans-support-and-next-steps
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with stakeholders on recommendation 28 of the LGBT veterans independent review.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence continues to work at pace with experts across Government and reference other schemes, such as the Canadian scheme, to establish an appropriate scheme for the financial award, working within the £50 million limit recommended in the independent review.
Defence is still considering how to best implement the recommendation; no specific decision has yet been taken about the mechanism for this, and development of the scheme is at an early stage. Defence cannot yet confirm the details, the expected number of claimants, its eligibility and application process, or the likely size of awards. However, the Government is committed to delivering the report’s recommendation, acknowledging that the process is intricate and must be followed correctly.
In the meantime, Defence will continue to engage with stakeholders, including LGBT veterans, as plans for the financial award progress and is committed to providing updates on the development of the scheme; eligibility criteria; and information on the application process on the ‘LGBT Veterans: support and next steps’ GOV.UK page as soon as possible: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/lgbt-veterans-support-and-next-steps