Asked by: Richard Tice (Reform UK - Boston and Skegness)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many staff in his Department are responsible for (a) processing and (b) responding to Freedom of Information Act requests; and if he will make an estimate of the annual cost to the public purse of this work.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD), due to its size and complexity, does not operate a central team responsible for answering all Freedom of Information (FOI) requests received by the Department nor is there a central budget for handling FOI requests. Every business area within MOD plays a part in managing FOI requests who wholly or in part contribute to the processing of FOI requests, including Departmental Secretariats who also have responsibility for Parliamentary correspondence.
Given this, annual costs are not held and are subsumed into each Defence organisations business operating budgets and it would not be possible to make an estimate of the annual cost of this work.
Asked by: Richard Tice (Reform UK - Boston and Skegness)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent on measures to achieve net zero targets in the last five years.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is fully committed to contributing to the UK achieving its legal commitment to be Net Zero by 2050. Between Financial Year 1209-20 and Financial Year 2023-24, the MOD has reduced its overall emissions from 3,650,000 tCO2e to 3,012,000 tCO2e.
Defence spending is investing in building our warfighting capability and to enhance operational advantage and resilience to protect our values and interests. Benefits of decarbonisation are a positive spillover and are not differentiated from this investment. For example, trials integrating alternative fuel sources and renewable energy technology can further unlock an ability to operate for longer periods without resupply and at greater reach across a dispersed battlefield.
A more detailed breakdown of Defence energy use and associated carbon emissions can be found in the MOD Annual Report and Accounts Annex D.