Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many of the houses bought from Annington are in (a) North Shropshire constituency, (b) Shropshire, (c) Staffordshire and (d) Telford and Wrekin.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The table below shows the number of properties bought by the Ministry of Defence from Annington Property Ltd located in North Shropshire, South Shropshire, Staffordshire, Telford, and Wrekin constituencies.
Location | Number of properties purchased from Annington Property Ltd |
North Shropshire | 140 |
South Shropshire | 0 |
Stafford | 190 |
Telford | 0 |
Wrekin | 600 |
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will take steps to discover the full extent of health issues in aircrew exposed to (a) fuel and (b) exhaust fumes from helicopters.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence is committed to the health and wellbeing of our people.
The Independent Medical Expert Group (IMEG) was previously tasked to review independently the evidence base for causality between Sea King helicopter exhaust fumes and rare cancers. The report by the IMEG concluded that the evidence did not meet internationally adopted criteria for causation of these rare cancers.
The Department will continue to monitor medical evidence and respond accordingly.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of exposure to (a) Sea King (b) Westland Wessex (c) Puma and (d) CH-47 Chinook helicopter (i) fuel and (ii) exhaust fumes on aircrew’s (A) health and (B) risk of developing cancer.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes were first received in 2019.
Without any admission of liability, since 23 April 2023 the Ministry of Defence has made five compensation payments, totalling £3,578,566 in relation to common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes. As of the 14 November 2024 there are seven related, continuing common law compensation claims.
The department is in the process of testing the exhaust emissions of in-service helicopters, including Chinook and Puma to ensure we are meeting our duty of care for personnel. It is essential that we can assure our people of their safety at work.
The Westland Sea king was retired in 2018. The Westland Wessex was retired in 2003.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to protect aircrew members from exposure to helicopter (a) fuel and (b) exhaust fumes.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes were first received in 2019.
Without any admission of liability, since 23 April 2023 the Ministry of Defence has made five compensation payments, totalling £3,578,566 in relation to common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes. As of the 14 November 2024 there are six related, continuing common law compensation claims.
The department is in the process of testing the exhaust emissions of in-service helicopters, including Chinook and Puma to ensure we are meeting our duty of care for personnel. It is essential that we can assure our people of their safety at work.
The Westland Sea king was retired in 2018. The Westland Wessex was retired in 2003.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with his (a) German and (b) Dutch counterpart on longer exhausts in (a) CH-47 Chinook, (b) Puma, (c) Sea King and (d) Westland Wessex helicopters.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
We have found no record of any discussions with Dutch or German counterparts regarding longer exhausts on Chinook and Puma aircraft. The German military does not operate Chinook nor Puma helicopters. The Netherlands does not operate Puma helicopters.
Due to their out of service dates of 2003 and 2018, no relevant information is held within Ministry of Defence relating to Sea King and Wessex helicopters; however, the Netherlands did not operate Sea King helicopters and neither country operated the Wessex.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many compensation payments have been made by his Department for health issues relating to Armed Forces helicopters since 23 April 2023; and what was the total value of those payments.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes were first received in 2019.
Without any admission of liability, since 23 April 2023 the Ministry of Defence has made five compensation payments, totalling £3,578,566 in relation to common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes. As of the 14 November 2024 there are six related, continuing common law compensation claims.
The department is in the process of testing the exhaust emissions of in-service helicopters, including Chinook and Puma to ensure we are meeting our duty of care for personnel. It is essential that we can assure our people of their safety at work.
The Westland Sea king was retired in 2018. The Westland Wessex was retired in 2003.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when his Department first became aware of the potential link between long exposure to exhaust fumes from helicopters used by the Armed Forces and the risk of cancer.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes were first received in 2019.
Without any admission of liability, since 23 April 2023 the Ministry of Defence has made five compensation payments, totalling £3,578,566 in relation to common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes. As of the 14 November 2024 there are six related, continuing common law compensation claims.
The department is in the process of testing the exhaust emissions of in-service helicopters, including Chinook and Puma to ensure we are meeting our duty of care for personnel. It is essential that we can assure our people of their safety at work.
The Westland Sea king was retired in 2018. The Westland Wessex was retired in 2003.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many legal claims made against his Department in relation to the impact of aircrew’s exposure to helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes were outstanding on 14 November 2024.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes were first received in 2019.
Without any admission of liability, since 23 April 2023 the Ministry of Defence has made five compensation payments, totalling £3,578,566 in relation to common law claims alleging adverse impact from helicopter fuel and exhaust fumes. As of the 14 November 2024 there are six related, continuing common law compensation claims.
The department is in the process of testing the exhaust emissions of in-service helicopters, including Chinook and Puma to ensure we are meeting our duty of care for personnel. It is essential that we can assure our people of their safety at work.
The Westland Sea king was retired in 2018. The Westland Wessex was retired in 2003.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the highest individual settlement paid to an aircrew member has been for the impact of helicopter exhaust fume exposure in each of the last five years.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
In the last five financial years, damages have been paid in 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2023-24 to former aircrew who have made common law compensation claims alleging adverse impacts of helicopter exhaust fumes. I have concerns that disclosing individual damages awards risks revealing the identity of individual claimants and I am, therefore, withholding the individual settlements under Freedom of Information Act Section 40(2) to protect personal information as governed by the Data Protection Act 2018 and GDPR.
Asked by: Helen Morgan (Liberal Democrat - North Shropshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of (a) Sea King (b) Westland Wessex (c) Puma and (d) CH-47 Chinook helicopters on air quality in areas with high helicopter air traffic.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Neither the Sea King nor Westland Wessex remain in service with the Ministry of Defence. They were retired in 2018 and 2003 respectively.
We do not believe that there is an increased risk to air quality from Puma and Chinook helicopters. However, we fully recognise the importance of acting on safety concerns. As such, the department has begun work to initiate a programme of engine exhaust emissions substance monitoring for in service helicopters in accordance with Health and Safety Executive approved methods.