Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of officer cadets entering Sandhurst since 2015 attended a (a) state and (b) private school.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The table below shows the proportion of officer cadets entering Sandhurst in the last 10 years who attended independent and state schools.
This data has been provided from a Single Service source rather than official statistics produced by Defence Statistics as the latter do not collate this information.
Training Year | Independent Schools % | State Schools % |
2015-16 | 40 | 60 |
2016-17 | 42 | 58 |
2017-18 | 43 | 57 |
2018-19 | 48 | 52 |
2019-20 | 43 | 57 |
2020-21 | 44 | 56 |
2021-22 | 43 | 57 |
2022-23 | 41 | 59 |
2023-24 | 39 | 61 |
2024-25 | 39 | 61 |
Note:
Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number for presentational purposes.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many working dogs the Army had in each year since 2010; and what the requirement was in each of those years.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As at 23 January 2025, there were 113 trained Military Working Dogs (MWD) in the British Army.
Determining whether an annual breakdown of MWD in the Army could be provided for each year since 2010 could only be achieved at a disproportionate cost due to information being held in different formats.
We would not routinely release the requirement for Military Working Animals due to reasons of operational security.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he decided not to release the workforce requirement figures of Army regiments for reasons of operational security.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
In 2022, with Departmental support, the Army adopted a position not to release the workforce requirement of its internal organisations following the announcement of the Integrated Review and Future Soldier transformation.
I am happy to speak to my hon. Friend about this further.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many overseas army training exercises took place each year since 2010.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Army invests significantly in skills, education and training for its people to build the problem-solving attributes, teamwork, resilience, intellect and creativity needed to be successful now and in the future.
The Army maintains an active overseas training programme that delivers against robust training objectives and supports UK defence engagement efforts overseas, as well as demonstrating our clear commitment to our Allies and partners.
The information requested is not held centrally, but I have provided a broad estimate of approximate figures. An illustrative estimate of the number of overseas training exercises conducted as part of the Overseas Training Exercise (OTX) programme is provided below. Please be aware however that some exercises are not included (such as those for specialist units) in the figures provided and the table represents only a partial picture. Information required to answer the question in full is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Year | Number of Overseas Exercises held |
2010-2020 | 75 exercises per year. (estimated)* |
2020-2021 | 0 - due to COVID |
2021-2022 | 0 - due to COVID |
2022-2023 | 55 |
2023-2024 | 84 |
2024-2025 | 70 to be completed (estimated) |
*Detailed information on training activity prior to 2020 is no longer held in accordance with MOD data retention policy, as a result this figure is strictly an estimate of annual activity
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) budget for and (b) amount spent on Defence medical services was in each year since 2015.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The table below presents the budget and amount spent by Defence Medical Services in each year since 2016. Figures prior to 2016 are not held in the format requested:
Financial Year | Budget £ | Spend £ |
16/17 | 505,432,887.00 | 457,074,000 |
17/18 | 476,356,801.00 | 461,981,000 |
18/19 | 469,936,182.00 | 470,270,000 |
19/20 | 498,647,556.00 | 494,110,000 |
20/21 | 502,061,045.00 | 470,433,673 |
21/22 | 507,039,627.00 | 492,879,950 |
22/23 | 530,653,498.00 | 509,508,070 |
23/24 | 550,152,449.00 | 544,294,366 |
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many medical rank reservists there were in the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Army and (c) RAF in each year since 2015.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
I am withholding the information as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.
Whilst a statistical release of overall Armed Forces strength is published annually, strength and capability statistics for certain specialisations are not released.
Releasing the current strength and requirement of medical service personnel could be exploited by our adversaries to target, disrupt and degrade an important element of Armed Forces capability.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many chefs were in post in the Army in each year since 2010; and what the requirement was in each of those years.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The number of chefs in post for the Army since 2010 are as follows:
Year* | Total |
2024 | 868 |
2023 | 920 |
2022 | 945 |
2021 | 973 |
2020 | 992 |
2019 | 1,061 |
2018 | 1,136 |
2017 | 1,186 |
2016 | 1,222 |
2015 | 1,281 |
2014 | 1,586 |
2013 | 1,969 |
2012 | 2,296 |
2011 | 2,556 |
2010 | 2,547 |
|
|
*The figure for each year was extrapolated from the number in post on 01 April for each respective year
We do not routinely release the workforce requirement figures of Army regiments or specialist professions as doing so is likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) air and (b) ground stewards were in post in the RAF in each year since 2010; and what the requirement was in each of those years.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The number of Logistics (Air Ground Stewards) in the Royal Air Force in each year since 2010 is as follows:
Ground Stewards | Total |
01 April 2010 | 482 |
01 April 2011 | 464 |
01 April 2012 | 435 |
01 April 2013 | 408 |
01 April 2014 | 395 |
01 April 2015 | 390 |
01 April 2016 | 392 |
01 April 2017 | 372 |
01 April 2018 | 349 |
01 April 2019 | 333 |
01 April 2020 | 330 |
01 April 2021 | 339 |
01 April 2022 | 331 |
01 April 2023 | 312 |
01 April 2024 | 291 |
Data is unable to be broken down by Air Steward and Ground Steward specialisation.
I am withholding the information requested for the workforce requirement as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterinary officers were in post in the Army in each year since 2010; and what the requirement was in each of those years.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The number of veterinary officers in post for the Army since 2010 are as follows.
Year* | Total |
2024 | 41 |
2023 | 43 |
2022 | 45 |
2021 | 45 |
2020 | 41 |
2019 | 40 |
2018 | 43 |
2017 | 41 |
2016 | 35 |
2015 | 35 |
2014 | 41 |
2013 | 41 |
2012 | 37 |
2011 | 36 |
2010 | 35 |
*The figure for each year was extrapolated from the number in post on 01 April for each respective year
We do not routinely release the workforce requirement figures of Army regiments or specialist professions as doing so is likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many nurses were in post in the (a) Royal Navy, (b) Army and (c) RAF in each year since 2010; and what the requirement was in each service in each of those years.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
I hope that my Rt Hon friend will understand that I am withholding the information as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.
Whilst a statistical release of overall Armed Forces strength is published annually, strength and capability statistics for certain specialisations are not released.
Releasing the current strength and requirement of medical service personnel could be exploited by our adversaries to target, disrupt and degrade an important element of Armed Forces capability.