Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the size of the defence force in the context of NATO commitments relating to any escalation of the Russian threat in eastern Europe.
Answered by James Heappey
Headline numbers of regular personnel do not define operational effectiveness. A more efficient training pipeline, fewer formed-unit deployments, organisational refinement and investment in improved capabilities mean that more units are ready more of the time. Through our offer to NATO, we offer the Alliance the full spectrum of defence capabilities.
20,000 Service personnel from the Royal Navy, the British Army, and the Royal Air Force will deploy across Europe to take part in Exercise Steadfast Defender 24. Our Armed Forces continue to meet all their operational commitments, including participating in every single NATO mission, supporting Ukraine, and tackling Houthi shipping attacks in the Red Sea.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of the expansion of AUKUS to include Canada.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Our ambition to deliver nuclear-powered submarines for Australia will remain trilateral, however, as our work progresses on AUKUS Pillar Two and other critical defence and security capabilities, we and our Australian and American partners will seek opportunities to engage key partners and allies when and where relevant, potentially including Canada, with whom we already enjoy a close defence relationship.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is taking steps to support research and development of space-based weaponry.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Space Strategy (2022) sets out the role of the Ministry of Defence to protect and defend our interests in space. We have allocated £1.4 billion over 10 years to develop military space capabilities. This investment enhances operations in terrestrial domains as well as making our space capabilities resilient to a range of threats and hazards. Our goal is to promote a safe, secure and sustainable space domain in accordance with our strategy as well as UK and international law.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has taken steps to increase Armed Forces recruitment from Commonwealth countries.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Commonwealth citizens have a long and distinguished history of service in the UK Armed Forces, and we continue to value the contribution they make. The recruitment of Commonwealth citizens is against the 1,350 per annum limit for the Armed Forces introduced on 5 November 2018, a 15% limit per Army cap badge, and the roles available. These limits remain extant but are kept under review.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with his Irish counterpart on improving bilateral military cooperation.
Answered by James Heappey
The Secretary of State for Defence has not met with his counterpart, the Irish Minister of Defence, however, I met with Minister Burke (Minister of State at the Department of Defence with responsibility for EU Affairs) on 30 November 2023. Defence and Security Co-operation with Ireland is conducted under the auspices of a Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2015.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has plans to increase the presence in Northern Ireland of the (a) Royal Navy and (b) RAF.
Answered by James Heappey
There is no immediate plan to expand the footprint of either the Royal Navy or Royal Air Force in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of cadet organisations for increasing levels of recruitment into the armed forces.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence sponsored cadet forces are military-themed voluntary youth organisations. The Cadet Forces are not set up as conduits for entry into the Armed Forces – this position is clearly stated in the UK’s commitment to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. However, many ex-cadets do go on to join the Regular or Reserve Forces; approximately 40% of officers and 20% of other ranks in the Regular Forces were previously cadets.
The Government is convinced of the benefits of Cadets, not just for the young people who participate but also for society as a whole and it remains committed to supporting the Cadet movement.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many individuals were enlisted into the British Armed Forces from the Romford constituency in the last 12 months.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Official Statistics on intake to the Regular Forces by Parliamentary Constituency are included in the Ministry of Defence’s Annual Location Statistics (ALS).
The latest edition (1 April 2023) of the ALS can be found at the following website, noting that the relevant Tables are 7.1, 7.2 and 7.3: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/location-statistics-for-uk-regular-armed-forces-and-civilians-2023. Figures included in the ALS cover the 12 months ending 31 March 2022, and are split by Service. The next edition (1 April 2024) will cover the 12 months ending 31 March 2023 and 2024 and is expected to be published in June.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the operational independence of the UK Carrier Strike Group.
Answered by James Heappey
The composition and size of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) deployments are tailored to meet the operational requirement and all options are continuously reviewed to ensure optimum Royal Navy output. A UK Carrier Strike Group can routinely deploy and operate with allies and partners, including those from Joint Expeditionary Force and NATO. Regardless of any integration of international escorts and aircraft during a deployment, we will always retain a sovereign capability giving us the ability to operate the UK Carrier Strike Group in an independent sovereign manner.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has taken steps to help increase the lethality of Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers.
Answered by James Heappey
Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) Carriers are designed to embark and operate fixed wing and rotary wing assets that are able to conduct offensive and defensive roles. Additionally, the QEC Carriers are complemented by other platforms within a task force deployment that bring a range of additional offensive capabilities. Operational planning ensures that any deployment has the offensive capabilities it needs to deliver its mission.
A range of programmes across Defence will enhance the lethality of a QEC-led task group going forward and ensure the capability remains credible in the future.