Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to strengthen the UK’s defence strategic partnership with France since February 2022.
Answered by James Heappey
The Integrated Review Refresh recognised France as one of our most important European partners. Through the 2023 UK-France Summit, we reaffirmed our commitment to the defence and security partnership of the 2010 Lancaster House Treaties. We also agreed to deepen our capability and defence industrial cooperation. The UK and France have also committed to progress activity to ensure mutually interoperability of weapons and platforms.
British and French forces regularly operate alongside each other. This includes joint participation in the UK-led NATO Enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup in Estonia - and combined exercising, including in the French Croix Du Sud exercise in April 2023 in the Pacific, and Exercise Orion 23 in May 2023 in Europe.
Asked by: Rachel Hopkins (Labour - Luton South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK armed forces personnel are based in Estonia; and how many will be based in that country in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025.
Answered by James Heappey
There are currently 984 UK Service personnel deployed to Estonia as part of the UK's enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) (down from 1554 in May 2023 when Ex SPRING STORM 2023 was taking place). A baseline deployment of c.1,000 troops is planned to be deployed in both 2024 and 2025. However, as the eFP is a rotational deployment, the precise number of personnel deployed will vary at any one point during that period. For example, during peak training periods, such as exercise SPRING STORM 2024, these numbers are likely to rise to c.2,000 UK personnel. In addition to our eFP deployment, from February to July 2023 the UK has also deployed a Typhoon squadron and 100 personnel from 140 Expeditionary Air Wing (some 200 personnel in total), in support of NATO's enhanced Air Policing mission.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in which countries UK personnel are deployed with NATO; on which (a) NATO and (b) domestic bases are they stationed; and at what levels.
Answered by James Heappey
The UK is one of the largest contributors of personnel to NATO, underlining our commitment to deterrence and defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area, with personnel deployed over twenty-one countries.
The number of UK personnel posted to NATO Peacetime Establishment locations (Table 1) and those deployed to NATO affiliated exercises and operations (Table 2) can be found below.
Table 1 – UK personnel deployed within the Peacetime Establishment in NATO as of June 2023.
Country | Organisation | Number of UK posts | Rank range |
Belgium | NATO HQ (Brussels) | 47 | OR4 – OF8 |
Belgium | SHAPE (Mons) | 169 | OR4 – OF9 |
Bulgaria | NFIU Bulgaria (Sofia) | 1 | OF3 |
Czech Republic | HQ ARRC (Vyskov) | 1 | OF4 |
Estonia | NFIU Estonia (Tallin) | 1 | OF4 |
France | NRDC HQ (Lille) | 10 | OR8 – OF6 |
Germany | NAEW&C FC (Geilenkirchen) | 9 | OR6 – OF6 |
Germany | 1 DEU NLD (Munster) | 6 | OR9 – OF5 |
Germany | NATO School (Oberammergau) | 3 | OR6 – OF4 |
Germany | AIRCOM (Ramstein) | 76 | OR4 – OF5 |
Germany | CAOCUE (Uedem) | 17 | OR4 – OF5 |
Germany | JSEC (Ulm) | 16 | OR4 – OF7 |
Germany | 1 NSB Wesel (Wesel) | 28 | OR3 – OF3 |
Greece | NRDC Greece (Thessaloniki) | 1 | OF3 |
Italy | NHRFI (Milan) | 17 | OR6 - OF7 |
Italy | JFCNP (Naples) | 124 | OR2 – OF7 |
Italy | DACCC (Poggio) | 26 | OR2 – OF5 |
Italy | NAGSF (Sigonella) | 6 | OR4 – OF3 |
Latvia | MND NE (Riga) | 4 | OF2 – OF5 |
Lithuania | NFIU Lithuania (Vilnius) | 1 | OF3 |
Netherlands | JFC Brunssum (Brunssum) | 109 | OR4 – OF7 |
Norway | JWC (Stavanger) | 32 | OR6 – OF5 |
Poland | JFTC (Bydgoszcz) | 3 | OF4 |
Poland | NFIU Poland (Bydgoszcz) | 1 | OF3 |
Poland | MND NE (Elblag) | 2 | OR7 – OF4 |
Poland | MNC NE (Szczecin) | 2 | OF3 – OF4 |
Portugal | STRIKFORNATO (Lisbon) | 14 | OR4 – OF7 |
Portugal | NCISS LATINA (Oiera) | 5 | OR7 – OR9 |
Romania | NFIU Romania (Bucharest) | 1 | OF3 |
Romania | MND SE (Bucharest) | 2 | OF3 - OF4 |
Slovakia | NFIU Slovakia (Bratislava) | 1 | OR6 |
Spain | CAOCTJ (Torrejon) | 15 | OR7 – OF4 |
Spain | NRDC Spain (Valencia) | 2 | OF3 – OF6 |
Türkiye | NRDC Turkiye (Istanbul) | 5 | OF4 – OF5 |
Türkiye | LANDCOM (Izmir) | 34 | OR6 – OF5 |
UK | 1NSB (Blandford) | 46 | OR3 – OF3 |
UK | CTC / NIFC (Molesworth) | 9 | OR7 – OF5 |
UK | MARCOM (Northwood) | 70 | OR4 – OF5 |
UK | JEWCS (Yeovilton) | 2 | OR2 – OR6 |
USA | SACT HQ (Norfolk, Virginia) | 51 | OR4 – OF8 |
USA | SHAPE Tampa (Tampa, Florida) | 1 | OF4 |
| Total | 969 | OR2 – OF9 |
Table 2 – NATO affiliated operations and exercises with UK troops deployed as of June 2023.
Ser | Activity | Outline | Location | Numbers Deployed |
1 | Op CABRIT Estonia | UK Contribution to NATO Forward Land Forces. (inclusive of Forward Land Forces, HQ CABRIT and Divisional Advisory Team). | Tapa and Tallinn, Estonia | 831 |
2 | Op CABRIT Poland Squadron | A UK Light Cavalry Squadron integrated with the US Forward Land Forces, including National Support Element. | Bemowo Piskie, Poland | 133 |
4 | Op ELGIN Bosnia | Staff Officers embedded in NATO HQ Sarajevo. | NATO HQ Sarajevo, Bosnia | 3 |
5 | Ex ARRCADE LEDGER | HQ ARRC and 7th Light Mechanised Brigade Combat Team Exercise. | NATO Forward Holding Base, Sennelager, Germany | 676 of which 43 are civilian contractors deployed through the Land Warfare Centre (LWC). |
5 | Ex JOINT COOPERATION | German sponsored NATO exercise. | Nirenburg, Germany | 2 |
|
|
| TOTAL | 1,678 |
Asked by: Holly Lynch (Labour - Halifax)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK meets its obligations to NATO.
Answered by Ben Wallace
NATO is undergoing a once-in-a-generation transformation that orientates it towards the main threats of Russia and Terrorism.
Our commitment to NATO is unconditional and our contribution to deterrence and defence of the Euro-Atlantic will be delivered via credible, deployable and lethal warfighting capabilities into the NATO Force Model.
Under the new Regional Plans, UK forces, operating alongside our Allies in NATO will deter further aggression and defend every inch of NATO territory. In the first year of these new plans, the UK will have enhanced our force posture in Estonia with rapid reinforcements on standby, have sent warships and fighter aircraft to south-east Europe and the Mediterranean and lead the inaugural very high-readiness Allied Reaction Force.
We will continue to contribute to every NATO mission and declare the UK’s nuclear deterrent to NATO.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the Baltic states on regional security.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK is committed to the security of the Baltic states, including through our enhanced Forward Presence in Estonia. The Foreign Secretary regularly speaks to his Baltic counterparts on regional security. He spoke to the Latvian Foreign Minister last month at the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels and welcomed the Lithuanian Foreign Minister to London in February. The Foreign Secretary will also be speaking to Baltic counterparts around the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting in Oslo next month. We are also committed to Baltic security through the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) as shown by the Prime Minister's attendance at the Leader level JEF Summit in Riga in December.
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK military personnel are stationed in Estonia.
Answered by James Heappey
There are currently 1,760 UK military personnel stationed in Estonia.
Asked by: Rob Roberts (Independent - Delyn)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average amount of state pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK is; and if he will provide a breakdown of the average state pension payment in each country in which recipients reside.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
In November 2020, the average (mean) amount of State Pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK was £70.61 per week.
Table 1. Average Amount of State Pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK, November 2020
Residency | Mean Weekly State Pension Amount |
Outside United Kingdom | £ 70.61 |
Source: Stat-Xplore - Home (dwp.gov.uk)
Below is a table of the average (mean) amount of State Pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK, broken down by country of residence, in November 2020.
Table 2. Average Amount of State Pension by Country of Residence, November 2020
Country of Residence | Mean Weekly State Pension Amount |
Abroad - Not known | £ 112.62 |
Albania | £ 110.57 |
Alderney | £ 126.99 |
Algeria | £ 62.41 |
Andorra | £ 94.96 |
Anguilla | £ 64.93 |
Antigua | £ 74.02 |
Argentina | £ 65.18 |
Aruba | £ 60.29 |
Ascension Island | £ 91.68 |
Australia | £ 50.09 |
Austria | £ 49.24 |
Azerbaijan | £ 166.77 |
Bahamas | £ 66.64 |
Bahrain | £ 97.27 |
Bangladesh | £ 39.49 |
Barbados | £ 116.97 |
Belarus | £ 111.17 |
Belgium | £ 63.62 |
Belize | £ 85.01 |
Bermuda | £ 81.36 |
Bolivia | £ 106.19 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | £ 73.12 |
Botswana | £ 75.98 |
Brazil | £ 81.20 |
Brunei | £ 121.78 |
Bulgaria | £ 122.47 |
Burkina Faso | £ 54.09 |
Cambodia | £ 119.76 |
Cameroon | £ 58.81 |
Canada | £ 46.34 |
Cape Verde | £ 52.18 |
Cayman Islands | £ 89.42 |
Chile | £ 72.13 |
China | £ 96.39 |
Colombia | £ 89.09 |
Cook Islands | £ 57.92 |
Costa Rica | £ 81.75 |
Cyprus | £ 122.54 |
Denmark | £ 58.40 |
Dom Commonwealth (Dominica) | £ 77.73 |
Dominican Republic | £ 107.52 |
Dutch Caribbean | £ 67.76 |
Ecuador | £ 85.95 |
Egypt | £ 78.64 |
El Salvador | £ 80.36 |
Equatorial Guinea | £ 142.11 |
Ethiopia | £ 88.34 |
Falkland Islands and Dependencies | £ 85.64 |
Faroe Islands | £ 33.01 |
Fiji | £ 73.66 |
Finland | £ 58.89 |
France | £ 113.52 |
French Overseas Departments | £ 84.34 |
French Polynesia | £ 55.84 |
Gambia | £ 91.46 |
Germany | £ 46.48 |
Ghana | £ 56.69 |
Gibraltar | £ 100.77 |
Greece | £ 109.44 |
Greenland | £ 23.21 |
Grenada | £ 77.33 |
Guam | £ 83.49 |
Guatemala | £ 77.73 |
Guernsey | £ 84.86 |
Guyana | £ 60.60 |
Honduras | £ 79.02 |
Hong Kong | £ 85.42 |
Hungary | £ 102.32 |
Iceland | £ 71.68 |
India | £ 50.10 |
Indonesia | £ 106.53 |
Iran | £ 70.85 |
Iraq | £ 64.11 |
Ireland | £ 66.41 |
Isle of Man | £ 127.85 |
Israel | £ 101.27 |
Italy | £ 56.79 |
Jamaica | £ 116.05 |
Japan | £ 46.97 |
Jersey | £ 70.02 |
Jordan | £ 67.90 |
Kazakhstan | £ 124.13 |
Kenya | £ 79.34 |
Kuwait | £ 103.54 |
Kyrgyzstan | £ 76.07 |
Laos | £ 100.66 |
Lebanon | £ 88.20 |
Lesotho | £ 59.64 |
Liechtenstein | £ 28.62 |
Luxembourg | £ 83.34 |
Macau | £ 77.52 |
Madagascar | £ 62.23 |
Malawi | £ 71.90 |
Malaysia | £ 77.87 |
Malta | £ 104.22 |
Mauritius | £ 108.25 |
Mexico | £ 74.98 |
Moldova | £ 124.94 |
Monaco | £ 111.96 |
Montserrat | £ 65.67 |
Morocco | £ 75.51 |
Mozambique | £ 74.56 |
Myanmar | £ 84.84 |
Namibia | £ 70.17 |
Nepal | £ 63.99 |
Netherlands | £ 55.81 |
Nevis, St Kitts-Nevis | £ 75.56 |
New Caledonia | £ 79.61 |
New Zealand | £ 46.44 |
Nicaragua | £ 79.72 |
Nigeria | £ 27.65 |
Norfolk Island | £ 55.18 |
North Macedonia | £ 24.20 |
Norway | £ 58.24 |
Oman | £ 89.53 |
Pakistan | £ 48.74 |
Panama | £ 96.96 |
Papua New Guinea | £ 75.49 |
Paraguay | £ 68.41 |
Peru | £ 88.02 |
Philippines | £ 138.86 |
Poland | £ 59.39 |
Portugal | £ 119.47 |
Puerto Rico | £ 77.32 |
Qatar | £ 113.55 |
Republic of Croatia | £ 62.10 |
Republic of Estonia | £ 78.98 |
Republic of Georgia | £ 129.54 |
Republic of Latvia | £ 68.34 |
Republic of Lithuania | £ 42.71 |
Republic of Slovenia | £ 60.38 |
Romania | £ 99.40 |
Russia | £ 85.51 |
Saint Helena & Dependencies | £ 89.27 |
San Marino | £ 29.33 |
Sark | £ 117.68 |
Saudi Arabia | £ 86.88 |
Senegal | £ 74.13 |
Serbia | £ 123.58 |
Seychelles | £ 79.10 |
Sierra Leone | £ 52.66 |
Singapore | £ 89.20 |
Solomon Islands | £ 79.08 |
Somalia | £ 44.20 |
South Africa | £ 56.52 |
South Korea | £ 41.69 |
Spain | £ 120.61 |
Sri Lanka | £ 59.98 |
St Lucia | £ 76.63 |
St Vincent & Grenadines | £ 80.10 |
State Union of Serbia and Montenegro | £ 53.44 |
Sudan | £ 71.27 |
Suriname | £ 151.95 |
Swaziland | £ 79.26 |
Sweden | £ 57.52 |
Switzerland | £ 51.98 |
Syria | £ 63.61 |
Tahiti | £ 77.00 |
Taiwan | £ 105.85 |
Tanzania | £ 87.61 |
Thailand | £ 119.10 |
The Czech Republic | £ 92.30 |
The Slovak Republic | £ 49.82 |
Togo | £ 50.10 |
Tonga | £ 73.36 |
Tours (Individuals on Tour) | £ 133.34 |
Trinidad & Tobago | £ 55.37 |
Tunisia | £ 88.16 |
Turkey | £ 132.24 |
Turks and Caicos Islands | £ 118.32 |
Uganda | £ 88.33 |
Ukraine | £ 115.86 |
United Arab Emirates | £ 107.46 |
United States | £ 74.19 |
United States Minor Outlying Islands | £ 75.89 |
Uruguay | £ 77.74 |
Vanuatu | £ 85.86 |
Venezuela | £ 67.62 |
Vietnam | £ 125.09 |
Virgin Islands (British) | £ 91.77 |
Virgin Islands (USA) | £ 72.74 |
Western Samoa | £ 34.12 |
Yemen | £ 42.90 |
Zambia | £ 75.67 |
Zimbabwe | £ 48.98 |
Source: Stat-Xplore - Home (dwp.gov.uk)
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what support his Department provides to NATO members with borders with Russia.
Answered by James Heappey
As NATO's leading European Ally, the UK provides substantial support to NATO Allies bordering Russia. We have strengthened our enhanced Forward Presence in Estonia by enhancing capabilities of the permanent Battlegroup for the long-term. We deployed an Aviation Task Force to Lithuania and we contribute to NATO enhanced Air Policing. We supported Finland during its accession process into NATO and we will continue to support its integration. We also share capabilities such as F-35s with Norway. Lastly, we continue to train and operate alongside all Allies in bilateral and multilateral fora.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many UK pensioners living overseas had their pensions suspended in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, (c) 2021 due to (i) non-return and (ii) late return of life certificates, broken down by country of residence.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
DWP holds data relating to the late and non-return of a Life Certificate for the 2019 period, which resulted in the temporary suspension of a customer’s State Pension payments. In 2019, 26,206 claims were temporarily suspended, which is broken down by country as shown in the following table: -
Country | Number of State Pension claims temporarily suspended in 2019 due to the late or non-return of a completed Life Certificate |
| |
India | 1,280 |
Uganda | 65 |
Iceland | 11 |
Costa Rica | 24 |
Ukraine | 21 |
Gambia | 37 |
Jamaica | 2,269 |
Nigeria | 1,265 |
Venezuela | 39 |
Sierra Leone | 35 |
Dominican Republic | 30 |
Ecuador | 52 |
Greece | 539 |
Bulgaria | 256 |
Poland | 116 |
Netherlands | 624 |
Hong Kong | 124 |
Fiji | 4 |
Anguilla | 9 |
Jordan | 13 |
Montserrat | 14 |
Malawi | 4 |
Canada | 15,798 |
Cook Islands | 0 |
Norfolk Islands | 3 |
Papua New Guinea | 11 |
Western Samoa | 2 |
Ascension Island | 1 |
Lesotho | 8 |
Dominica | 277 |
South Korea | 52 |
Oman | 55 |
Lebanon | 35 |
Romania | 69 |
Peru | 33 |
Serbia | 63 |
Namibia | 26 |
Libya | 3 |
Tonga | 4 |
Cape Verde Islands | 5 |
Belarus | 2 |
Bangladesh | 473 |
Mauritius | 125 |
Azerbaijan | 4 |
Kazakhstan | 2 |
Vietnam | 74 |
Virgin Islands (British) | 25 |
Estonia | 10 |
Taiwan | 19 |
Panama | 36 |
Uruguay | 19 |
Kuwait | 28 |
Liechtenstein | 6 |
Antilles (Netherlands) | 11 |
St Kitts & Nevis | 76 |
Switzerland | 1,529 |
Brazil | 164 |
Vanuatu | 11 |
Bolivia | 30 |
Cambodia | 37 |
Nepal | 26 |
Brunei | 9 |
Bosnia Herzegovina | 7 |
Ethiopia | 14 |
Iran | 14 |
Hungary | 127 |
Swaziland | 29 |
Russia | 23 |
As a result of the outbreak of COVID in 2020, DWP suspended the Life Certificate exercise in March 2020, to ensure that our customers were not negatively impacted by any postal service issues which could have resulted in their State Pension payments being temporarily suspended. Therefore, DWP does not hold any data for this period.
DWP reintroduced the Life Certificate exercise in November 2021. Therefore, DWP does not hold any data for 2021, as any potential suspensions would be applied after 16 weeks of issue of the Life Certificate, which would mean that the suspension occurred in 2022.
The Management Information used has been taken from the same operational source data systems as our published administrative data. However, as this Management Information is not a recognised National or Official Statistic, it has not been subjected to the same level of Quality Assurance. As a result, these figures should be treated with caution.
Asked by: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many UK pensioners living overseas had their pensions stopped incorrectly in 2022 broken down by nation.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Where payments are stopped and then reinstated, this is due to late return or non-return of a life certificate rather than from anything incorrect on the part of DWP. The number of payments stopped as a result of late return or non-return are:
Albania | 7 |
Andorra | 51 |
Anguilla | 74 |
Antigua | 88 |
Antilles (Netherlands) | 8 |
Armenia | 1 |
Bahamas | 211 |
Bangladesh | 429 |
Barbados | 796 |
Benin | 2 |
Bermuda | 90 |
Brazil | 737 |
Bulgaria | 348 |
Burkina Faso | 1 |
Canada | 19,061 |
Cayman Islands | 42 |
Central African Republic | 1 |
Costa Rica | 55 |
Croatia | 105 |
Cyprus | 1,831 |
Czech Republic | 126 |
Denmark | 525 |
Djibouti | 1 |
Dominican Republic | 38 |
Egypt | 224 |
Estonia | 18 |
Falkland Islands | 11 |
Fiji | 60 |
France | 1,690 |
Gambia | 50 |
Georgia | 12 |
Greenland | 0 |
Grenada | 217 |
Guam | 0 |
Guyana | 86 |
Hong Kong | 527 |
Hungary | 146 |
India | 1,934 |
Indonesia | 246 |
Israel | 426 |
Jamaica | 2,847 |
Jordan | 67 |
Kenya | 234 |
Kuwait | 17 |
Kyrgyzstan | 5 |
Liberia | 2 |
Luxembourg | 85 |
Malawi | 33 |
Malaysia | 74 |
Maldive Islands | 0 |
Mexico | 454 |
Monaco | 92 |
Montserrat | 27 |
Morocco | 7 |
North Korea | 0 |
Panama | 28 |
Philippines | 1,564 |
Puerto Rico | 4 |
Republic of the Congo | 2 |
Russia | 5 |
Saudi Arabia | 3 |
Serbia & Montenegro | 77 |
Seychelles | 2 |
Singapore | 191 |
Slovakia | 8 |
Sri Lanka | 30 |
St Lucia | 457 |
St Vincent/Grenadines | 190 |
Sudan | 5 |
Swaziland | 2 |
Switzerland | 105 |
Syria | 6 |
Taiwan | 17 |
Tanzania | 34 |
Trinidad & Tobago | 264 |
Turks & Caicos Islands | 4 |
Uganda | 49 |
United Arab Emirates | 50 |
Uruguay | 22 |
Vietnam | 88 |
Virgin Islands (British) | 29 |
Virgin Islands (USA) | 15 |
Zimbabwe | 47 |
The Management Information used has been taken from the same operational source data systems as our published administrative data. However, as this Management Information is not a recognised National or Official Statistic, it has not been subjected to the same level of Quality Assurance. As a result, these figures should be treat with caution.