House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard Written Answers
Q
Asked by Paul Flynn
(Newport West)
Asked on: 22 March 2016
Ministry of Defence
Armed Forces: Carbon Emissions
32084
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the carbon emissions of UK forces operating abroad were in the most recent year for which figures are available.
A
Answered by: Mr Julian Brazier
Answered on: 30 March 2016
Information on the Department’s carbon emissions can be found in the Sustainable Ministry of Defence Annual Report 2014/15, using the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/447951/20150723-Sustainable_MOD_Annual_Report-internet-ver.pdf
These figures cover carbon emissions from the Defence estate, including overseas sites and domestic business travel; the Department does not hold data on emissions from UK military operational activity overseas.
Q
Asked by Jim Shannon
(Strangford)
Asked on: 16 March 2016
Ministry of Defence
Defence: Procurement
31375
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to improve defence capacity building.
A
Answered by: Michael Fallon
Answered on: 29 March 2016
We engage in capacity building activities with a wide range of international partners, covering a broad spectrum of topics including Humanitarian and Disaster Relief; Countering Violent Extremism; Peace Support Operations and countering illicit trafficking.
We committed in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 to increase our capacity building with partners, and have since then expanded our activity in a number of ways.
For example, we have launched a new three year Counter-IED capacity building programme with Pakistan. We have also joined the US-German Trans-Atlantic Capability Enhancement and Training (TACET) initiative, under which we will deploy Short Term Training Teams to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland. In Ukraine, where we have already trained over 2,000 members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, we are aiming to provide additional support to Ukrainian Defence reform including practical interventions in areas such as strategic communication and modernisation of procurement and logistics systems. In Nigeria we continue to expand our resident British Military Advisory and Training Team, and have committed to more than doubling the number of UK military personnel who deploy on short term training tasks to 300 in 2016. We have also significantly increased the support we provide to the Jordanian Army to help them improve border security.
Q
Asked by Sir Nicholas Soames
(Mid Sussex)
Asked on: 21 March 2016
Ministry of Defence
Armed Forces: South China Sea
31832
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of whether there are circumstances under which the Government would consider deploying armed forces in the South China Sea.
A
Answered by: Penny Mordaunt
Answered on: 29 March 2016
The UK remains concerned about the situation in the South China Sea. We call on all parties to uphold freedom of navigation and freedom of overflight, to refrain from activities that increase tension, and to pursue urgently a settlement of the maritime disputes peacefully in accordance with international law. As a major trading nation that has substantial links with all the nations bordering the South China Sea the UK has a close security interest in the maintenance of regional peace and stability. While we have a limited permanent military presence in the form of the Brunei Garrison and our contribution to the Five Powers Defence Arrangements in Malaysia and Singapore, other than planning for routine exercises and defence engagement tasks. We have made no specific assessment of the circumstances under which we would deploy Armed Forces to the region.
Q
Asked by Stephen Doughty
(Cardiff South and Penarth)
Asked on: 22 March 2016
Ministry of Defence
Somalia: Military Aid
32102
To ask the Secre