Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Coaker on 27 January (HL4169), whether the proposal to convert the Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Associations into a non-departmental public body is supported by members of the Council of Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Associations; and what consultations with members have taken place.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

As stated in my Written Answer of 27 January (HL4169), the views of the membership of the Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Associations (RFCAs) were taken into account as part of the 2019 Review of the RFCAs which recommended that the Council of RFCAs (CRFCA) and the 13 RFCAs should be merged into a single Executive Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), with a National Office and a set of regional organisations.

There will of course be divergent views in any organisation which is potentially subject to change. However, notwithstanding individual perspectives, it is critical that the delivery model is regularised as it currently does not comply with the principles set out in Managing Public Money: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/managing-public-money

Under current legislation, the CRFCA was not intended to be a separate legal entity. Through section 116 (s116) of the Reserve Forces Act 1996 (RFA96), it is a Joint Committee that is part of, and subordinate to, the Associations that have created it. This means that in its current form, RFA96 vests in the Association Voluntary Membership executive authority which, through s116, has been delegated to the CRFCA Board via Association Chairs and then sub-delegated to the CRFCA Chief Executive. As noted in the RFCA Framework Agreement 2016, this creates inevitable tension between an Association’s autonomy and its application of delegation, and any directive authority vested in CRFCA Chief Executive.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government what work is being undertaken, and by who, regarding the integration of AI in nuclear (1) command, (2) control, and (3) communications systems; and whether they have commissioned research to identify and manage high-risk AI applications.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The UK’s nuclear weapons are operationally independent and only the Prime Minister can authorise their use. It is a long-standing policy that we do not discuss detailed nuclear command and control matters and so will not be able to provide any additional detail.

Research to identify, understand, and mitigate against risks of AI in sensitive applications is underway. We will ensure that, regardless of any use of AI in our strategic systems, human political control of our nuclear weapons is maintained at all times.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risks of private maritime security companies becoming non-compliant through expiry of anti-piracy licences; and what impact this would have on international shipping.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

All Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSCs) operating in the former Indian Ocean High Risk Area (HRA) require approval under the Open General Trade Control Licence for Maritime Anti-Piracy (OGTCL MA-P). Once granted by the Export Control Joint Unit, this approval is open-ended for as long as the PMSC remains active in the maritime anti-piracy sector and abides by the terms of the OGTCL MA-P licence.

ECJU would inform His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs, which is responsible for the enforcement of the UK export licensing regime, if they became aware of any breaches of licence conditions.

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of vessels transiting the Indian Ocean with armed guards have UK-licensed firearms onboard.

Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)

The Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) is responsible for licensing Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSCs) which provide armed security guards to protect vessels transiting the Indian Ocean High Risk Area from the threat of piracy. It also licences the vessel-based armouries which PMSCs use to store their weapons.

The licensing process for PMSCs and vessel-based armouries does not require information about where firearms originated, and therefore ECJU has no record of this information.

ECJU does not proactively monitor or record the number of vessels within the Indian Ocean.

Found: Letter dated 20/03/2025 from Baroness Jacqui Smith to Lord West of Spithead regarding apprenticeships