Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on increasing the number of medical reservists joining the Armed Forces.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
People working in the National Health Service have many transferable skills that can be of great benefit to the Armed Forces reserve, whether they be clinicians, such as doctors and nurses, or staff working in leadership or management roles. There have been no recent ministerial discussions on this issue. However, the Department of Health and Social Care and the Ministry of Defence are working with NHS Employers to ensure that NHS organisations are supportive and flexible when it comes to people joining the Armed Forces reserve, and to enable individuals to train and deploy when needed.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what percentage of nursing posts are currently being filled by Bank Nurses in each Acute Hospital in the Cheshire and Merseyside ICB area.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the information requested.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the most frequent reasons were for new applicants to the Army being refused on medical grounds in each year since 2020.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
It is taking time to interrogate the data and therefore it has not been possible to provide the answer in the time available. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as practical and will place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to produce a National Defence Plan.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence is supporting the Cabinet Office on the design and implementation of an internal-to-government Home Defence Programme. This will further enhance UK national security and resilience through bolstering civilian-military coordination and HMG’s overall preparedness.
The upcoming Strategic Defence Review will reflect the importance of strengthening national resilience and reinforcing the UK’s homeland security to keep the country safe and protect its citizens.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2025 to Question 35639 on Army: Food, if he will he publish the results of the Army Messing Survey 2021.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Army Messing Survey 2021 document was developed for an internal audience and there are no current plans to publish the results. The Department incorporated the feedback of this survey into the Army Exploring the Appetites of Today Soldiers (EATS) proposition, trialled across a series of 14-18 month pilots. The results of the pilots led to a final report published in 2023 and informed the development of the Defence Catering Strategy (DCS) - the implementation of which began in May in early 2024.
There are no plans for another wholesale review in the near term and, as referred to in my answer of 10 March 2025 to Question 35639, the DCS provides personnel with the opportunity to provide regular feedback through a wide variety of existing means so that we can continually improve food quality across Defence.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2025 to Question 35639 on Army: Food, for what reason there was a period of three years between the 2021 survey and the launch of the Defence Catering Strategy.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Army Messing Survey 2021 document was developed for an internal audience and there are no current plans to publish the results. The Department incorporated the feedback of this survey into the Army Exploring the Appetites of Today Soldiers (EATS) proposition, trialled across a series of 14-18 month pilots. The results of the pilots led to a final report published in 2023 and informed the development of the Defence Catering Strategy (DCS) - the implementation of which began in May in early 2024.
There are no plans for another wholesale review in the near term and, as referred to in my answer of 10 March 2025 to Question 35639, the DCS provides personnel with the opportunity to provide regular feedback through a wide variety of existing means so that we can continually improve food quality across Defence.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his planned timetable is for the next Army Messing Survey.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Army Messing Survey 2021 document was developed for an internal audience and there are no current plans to publish the results. The Department incorporated the feedback of this survey into the Army Exploring the Appetites of Today Soldiers (EATS) proposition, trialled across a series of 14-18 month pilots. The results of the pilots led to a final report published in 2023 and informed the development of the Defence Catering Strategy (DCS) - the implementation of which began in May in early 2024.
There are no plans for another wholesale review in the near term and, as referred to in my answer of 10 March 2025 to Question 35639, the DCS provides personnel with the opportunity to provide regular feedback through a wide variety of existing means so that we can continually improve food quality across Defence.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the current shortfall in the (a) Army Reserve, (b) RAF Reserve, (c) Royal Navy Reserve and (d) Royal Marines Reserve.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
I am grateful for the contribution of our Reserve Forces who provide the UK with the ability to meet the threats we face at home and overseas, with the scale, skills, agility and connection to society that it needs, in a cost-effective way.
The requested information is published in the Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics, the latest edition of which (1 January 2025) can be found at the following address: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/quarterly-service-personnel-statistics-2025/quarterly-service-personnel-statistics-1-january-2025#future-reserves-2020-fr20-programme-monitoring
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the most recent survey of Army personnel on the quality of food served to them was undertaken.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Delivering high quality and varied food to Service personnel is important to both the Army and the Department. The Army regularly provides opportunities for its personnel to provide feedback and encourages them to do so.
The most recent survey undertaken occurred in 2021, whereby the Army undertook the Army Messing Survey The feedback from this survey informed the development of the Army EATS (Exploring the Appetites of Today Soldiers) report. Not only did the survey collate personnel feedback relating to the quality of food, but also feedback on serving hours, environment and the method of service provided.
Acting on the results of this, in 2024 Defence launched the Defence Catering Strategy, which aims to improve food provision across the entire Armed Forces and provides new menus for Service personnel. The strategy also encourages personnel to regularly provide feedback through a wide variety of existing means so that we can continually improve food quality across Defence.
Asked by: Derek Twigg (Labour - Widnes and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which countries the Army sourced chicken from for its personnel's meals in the past five years.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
This information is not held.
Under the terms of the Ministry of Defences’ (MOD) food contracts, the procurement of all produce is the responsibility of the prime contractors.
All food procured for MOD personnel must comply with MOD food quality standards which, in turn, comply with all UK and EU production standards, Farm Assurance or equivalent.