House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard Written Answers
A400M Aircraft
Question
Andrew Rosindell
Conservative
Romford
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the Atlas A400M for meeting the military transport requirements of the Royal Air Force.
Answer
Maria Eagle
Labour
Liverpool Garston
Commons
Answered on 22 August 2024
The Atlas has proven very capable in the Air Transport role. With superior range, speed and load capacity, the Atlas Force can deliver a variety of military equipment and vital spare parts.
The Atlas Force has also conducted rapid deployment of humanitarian aid relief to disaster hit regions and efficient evacuations of civilians from regions that had become unstable.
Veterans: Mental Health Services
Question
Andrew Bowie
Conservative
West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to help ensure better provision of mental health support for veterans.
Answer
Al Carns
Labour
Birmingham Selly Oak
Commons
Answered on 22 August 2024
This is a Government of service that will always stand up for those who serve our country. I am leading work across Government and with Civil Society to look at the best ways to ensure veterans and their families get access to the health, housing, employment and other support they need. NHS England offers Op COURAGE: the Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Service, which provides a broad range of specialist mental health and wellbeing care and support for service leavers, reservists, veterans and their families. More information and contact details on Op COURAGE can be found here:
www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/armed-forces-community/mental-health/veterans-reservists(opens in a new tab).
As health is devolved, I am also looking forward to working with counterparts in the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland Governments on this important issue.
Ammunition: Manufacturing Industries
Question
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will have discussions with UK armaments manufacturers about the adequacy of the munitions stockpile.
Answer
Maria Eagle
Labour
Liverpool Garston
Commons
Answered on 7 August 2024
Munitions stockpile levels and requirements are kept under constant review, balancing current holdings against threats, availability, industrial capacity and evolving technology.
The Ministry of Defence is engaging closely with industry partners and developing a new Defence Industrial Strategy to ensure we have the industrial base we need to support our, and our allies’, requirements. The Government is committed to a long-term partnership with our domestic defence industry to support innovation and resilience.
The Strategic Defence Review will determine the capabilities and reforms required by UK defence to meet the threats of the 21st century. The Government is committed to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence as soon as possible.
Ammunition: Procurement
Question
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is taking steps to ensure that the volume of his Department’s munitions orders from the UK armaments industry delivers a level of output that sustains warfighting levels of production over the Parliament.
Answer
Maria Eagle
Labour
Liverpool Garston
Commons
Answered on 7 August 2024
Munitions stockpile levels and requirements are kept under constant review, balancing current holdings against threats, availability, industrial capacity and evolving technology.
The Ministry of Defence is engaging closely with industry partners and developing a new Defence Industrial Strategy to ensure we have the industrial base we need to support our, and our allies’, requirements. The Government is committed to a long-term partnership with our domestic defence industry to support innovation and resilience.
The Strategic Defence Review will determine the capabilities and reforms required by UK defence to meet the threats of the 21st century. The Government is committed to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence as soon as possible.
Ammunition: Procurement
Question
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has set targets for the replenishment of munitions stocks in (a) the Army, (b) the Royal Navy, (c) the Royal Air Force and (d) Strategic Command.
Answer
Maria Eagle
Labour
Liverpool Garston
Commons
Answered on 7 August 2024
Munitions stockpile levels and requirements are kept under constant review, balancing current holdings against threats, availability, industrial capacity and evolving technology.
The Ministry of Defence is engaging closely with industry partners and developing a new Defence Industrial Strategy to ensure we have the industrial base we need to support our, and our allies’, requirements. The Government is committed to a long-term partnership with our domestic defence industry to support innovation and resilience.
The Strategic Defence Review will determine the capabilities and reforms required by UK defence to meet the threats of the 21st century. The Government is committed to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence as soon as possible.
Ammunition: Finance
Question
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he plans to provide an additional £10bn of funding for munitions replenishment over the next ten years.
Answer
Maria Eagle
Labour
Liverpool Garston
Commons
Answered on 7 August 2024
Munitions stockpile levels and requirements are kept under constant review, balancing current holdings against threats, availability, industrial capacity and evolving technology.
The Ministry of Defence is engaging closely with industry partners and developing a new Defence Industrial Strategy to ensure we have the industrial base we need to support our, and our allies’, requirements. The Government is committed to a long-term partnership with our domestic defence industry to support innovation and resilience.
The Strategic Defence Review will determine the capabilities and reforms required by UK defence to meet the threats of the 21st century. The Government is committed to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence as soon as possible.
Armed Forces: Public Appointments
Question
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how he plans to assess the performance of service chiefs two years after their appointment.
Answer
Al Carns
Labour
Birmingham Selly Oak
Commons
Answered on 6 August 2024
The Secretary of State for Defence, supported by the Permanent Secretary and the Chief of the Defence Staff, regularly takes stock of the performance of the Service Chiefs.
Ministry of Defence: Cost Effectiveness
Question
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to (a) implement and (b) cancel efficiency savings budgeted for by the previous Government for (i) his Department and (ii) departmental arm’s length bodies; and what plans she has for further such efficiency savings.
Answer
Maria Eagle
Labour
Liverpool Garston
Commons
Answered on 5 August 2024
Plans for future efficiency savings across the Department will be considered as part of the Spending Review.
Veterans: Homelessness
Question
Andrew Bowie
Conservative
West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to reduce veteran homelessness.
Answer
Al Carns
Labour
Birmingham Selly Oak
Commons
Answered on 5 August 2024
The level of homelessness, including for our veterans, is too high.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is working across Government to ensure veterans have access to the support they need on housing, as well as mental health, employment and other areas.
The Government will develop a new cross-Government strategy, working with Mayors and Councils across the country, to put Britain back on track to ending homelessness. The MOD will work with other departments to take a long term approach and to tackle the root causes of homelessness.