Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether RFA Tiderace is being placed at extended readiness.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ships are adjusted to reflect operational requirements and to ensure outputs are optimised. Individual ships will be generated to different levels of readiness as required. As such, RFA Tiderace is currently alongside for a period and will be regenerated as needed.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects RFA Tiderace to next be put to sea.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ships are adjusted to reflect operational requirements and to ensure outputs are optimised. Individual ships will be generated to different levels of readiness as required. As such, RFA Tiderace is currently alongside for a period and will be regenerated as needed.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse was of (a) additional to their wages and (b) deployment allowances that were made to the crew of submarines providing the continual at sea deterrent in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The tables below provide the data requested.
Table A – Cost for Submariner Recruitment & Retention Pay [Paid Above Basic Salary]
Financial Year | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|
Recruitment & Retention Pay [Submariner] | £5,829,718 | £6,020,589 | £5,899,253 | £6,338,728 | £6,750,011 |
|
Table B – Total Costs of Local Oversea Allowance (LOA) and Longer Separation Allowances (LSA)
Financial Year | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
|
Total | £1,136,491 | £1,682,940 | £1,105,415 | £1,396,261 | £2,149,526 |
|
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his policy is on making additional payments to senior officers and shortage professions on board Royal Navy submarines to ensure submarines can put to sea.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Royal Navy has sufficient personnel to meet all of its operational commitments. However, the RN continues to work to identify innovative measures to recruit and retain the highest quality personnel.
The Submarine Remuneration Review (SMRR) seeks to modernise the way in which the Royal Navy intends to remunerate all of it’s submariners by ensuring a new simplified scheme is implemented which improves both requirement and retention.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to take steps with the Secretary of State for the Home Department to use RAF Voyager aircraft to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The Home Office is responsible for operationalising Migration and Economic Development Partnership flights to Rwanda and it plans to do so using a commercial provider. The Secretary of State for Defence will however consider any requests for support according to the normal Military Aid to the Civil Authorities process.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether a deployment of RAF Voyagers to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda would require an on the ground UK military presence in Rwanda to receive and refuel the RAF aircraft.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The RAF routinely flies to civilian airports around the world. As is common throughout the aviation industry, ground handling services at civilian airports are provided through the receiving aerodrome or civil fixed base operator.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reason there is no armed forces recruitment target for ethnic minorities.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Whilst Defence has not set hard targets for the recruitment of ethnic minority personnel for the Armed Forces, we have set internally published levels of ambition to increase the recruitment and representation of underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities. The purpose of these levels of ambition is to act as a catalyst for innovation and activity, and to provide challenge and stretch to existing processes and approaches.
Defence has committed to improving the recruitment of ethnic minority personnel into the Armed Forces and is engaged in a wide range of activities to promote better understanding and enhance engagement with ethnic minority communities, reviewing Armed Forces recruitment processes and delivering more targeted marketing and communications towards potential ethnic minority applicants.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department has made on their target for women to account for 30% of personnel recruited by 2030.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 11 December 2023 to Question 4844.
In the 12 months to 30 September 2023, the proportion of female intake was 12.3% and we hope to continue to work towards the target year on year.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2024 to Question 16241 on Spectacles: Irlen Syndrome, what financial support is available to low-income families to help fund prescription glasses for children where the cost of the prescription exceeds the £50 NHS voucher cost.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS optical vouchers are available for children to help with the cost of glasses that correct a defect in sight. There are ten optical voucher values ranging from £42.40 to £233.56, depending on the strength of the optical lenses. The cost of glasses will be set by individual optical practices and because prices can vary, we would always advise individuals to shop around.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2024 to Question 20104 on Armed Forces: Housing, how many emergency pest control requests were responded to within three hours.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
In relation to the incidents data in the table referred to, there were no emergency incidents relating to pest control activities requiring a response within three hours.