Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure UK defence readiness is not compromised by incidents related to climate change.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has previously provided, and continues to provide, civil authorities with military support across the UK under military aid to civil authorities (MACA). Defence maintains a cadre of military personnel and capabilities which can be used in the wider Government response to emergencies including, but not limited to, those related to climate change.
The MOD ensures that Defence personnel are suitably trained and equipped to respond to a wide variety of potential incidents. This includes incidents in the UK but also Defence support to Humanitarian and Disaster Relief activities globally. Defence planning staffs are well-versed, trained and practised in the principles of planning to ensure Defence can continue to meet its specific strategic objectives.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the future launch of the S-80-class submarine by the Spanish Navy, what steps he is taking to ensure that Spain respects the national territorial waters around Gibraltar.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We are confident of UK sovereignty over the whole of Gibraltar, including British Gibraltar Territorial Waters. The Royal Navy continues to challenge all incursions by State vessels into British Gibraltar Territorial Waters, and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office support this by making formal diplomatic protests to the relevant authorities.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps he has taken to ensure the readiness of the Type 45 destroyers.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The normal operating cycle of every ship involves them entering different readiness levels depending on their programmes and Departmental planning requirements.
It is Ministry of Defence policy not to publish details of the readiness states of individual Royal Navy vessels or types for the purpose of safeguarding national security.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans for construction of the Type 26 frigates to begin.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
I refer the hon. Members to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary on 4 November 2016 (HCSW237).
The Type 26 Programme will deliver a new generation of cutting-edge warships for our Royal Navy at best value for taxpayers.
The UK Government’s commitment will secure hundreds of high-skilled shipbuilding jobs on the Clyde for at least two decades and hundreds more in the supply chain across Britain.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many out of use naval charts are held by his Department; and what estimate he has made of the value of such charts.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
Royal Navy nautical charts are only printed for training and operational requirements. Once issued they are only used by the relevant Unit and, as stated on 14 July 2016 in answer to Question 42313, the accounting value of our holdings is rated as 'Zero'.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the estimated value is of maps held by his Department.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The Department has not estimated the value of its maps. They are increasingly held in digital form, in many cases issued and used digitally, and only printed as required. The accounting value of our holdings is rated as 'zero'as they have no realisable financial value due to copyright and licensing constraints. The value to Defence of the material held in the databases is impossible to quantify.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps his Department has taken to adhere to the Armed Forces Covenant.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The Covenant is a promise from the nation ensuring that those who serve or who have served in the Armed Forces, and their families, are treated fairly. The Covenant is delivered by Government Departments, Local Government Authorities, the Charitable Sector and Companies.
Recent steps taken by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) include setting up a network of Armed Forces Covenant champions across the services and the launch of a new Covenant website and branding in January this year. We have been running the application process for the annual £10 million Covenant fund and the £25 million Aged Veterans Fund as well as reviewing applications for LIBOR funding. Work is also being undertaken with financial services providers to tailor their products for the Armed Forces community including Banking, Insurance and Credit History. Our engagement with Local Government Authorities to ensure that the Armed Forces Community can access the same services as other local residents has continued.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on reaching a settlement with Gurkha soldiers who retired before 2000.
Answered by Julian Brazier
The Government and the people of the United Kingdom hold the Gurkhas in the highest esteem and have done so throughout their 200 years of service to the Crown. Successive Governments have taken steps to ensure that the service provided by Gurkhas is appropriately recognised and reflects the terms and nature of that service, including in relation to pensions.
These sentiments were most recently confirmed in the previous Coalition Government's response to the All Party Parliamentary Group report on historic Gurkha grievances and the statement made by my hon. Friend the former Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans (Ms Soubry) on 29 January 2015 HCWS234.
This reaffirmed successive Governments' long standing approach to public sector pension provisions which is that an individual qualifies for a pension according to the rules of that scheme at the time, and that improvements to public sector pension or compensation schemes should not be introduced retrospectively because of the burden such an approach would place on the Exchequer.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's wellness strategy is.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
A new Health and Wellbeing Strategy for all Ministry of Defence (MOD) employees was published in mid-2015 and is designed to provide guidance to the Chain of Command and civilian line managers on how to manage the health needs of their people.
The aim is to maximise the number of people fit to work, managing people back to work after a period of sickness, so that they are fit and able to meet the requirements of Defence outputs, including operational effectiveness.
The strategy applies to all Defence People and not just Service personnel for whom maintaining health, wellbeing and fitness is a major contributor to the moral and physical components of fighting power. Although there are differences in the Terms and Conditions of Service and requirements placed on civilian and military workforces, all people working in Defence have a role to play in contributing to Defence outputs.
The Health and Wellbeing Strategy has four pillars: Lifestyle, Injury prevention, Preventative health and, Mental health. It is a through-life process that sets the conditions to allow people to Join, Train, Work, Live and Leave well.
Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) policy and (b) other responsibilities are of each special adviser in his Department.
Answered by Michael Fallon
Special Advisers provide policy, political, and communications advice to Ministers, across the business of the Department in accordance with the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.