House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard Written Answers
Q
Asked by Viscount Waverley
Asked on: 25 March 2020
Ministry of Defence
Army Reserve: Coronavirus
HL2986
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the first aid, (2) the trauma and triage, and (3) the security and Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear defence, capabilities of the Army Reserve; and what plans they have, if any, to deploy the Army Reserve to help address the COVID-19 pandemic.
A
Answered by: Baroness Goldie
Answered on: 06 April 2020
Defence has a number of existing contingency plans in place to provide support to civil authorities, including to the NHS. Our personnel are already providing assistance in a number of capacities and this includes those with specialist medical training. Considering the likely additional call on military assistance to mitigate COVID-19 related staff absences in civil authorities, and the increasing volume of patients requiring treatment by the NHS, Defence is consistently monitoring and enhancing its plans, training and readiness in order to support additional requests.