Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many cars there are in his Department's fleet; and how many of those cars are (a) electric and (b) hybrid vehicles.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Ministry of Defence no longer purchases commercial, non-combat motor vehicles but leases them through a Fleet Management Service contract known as Phoenix II.
The number of cars under the contract in each category is detailed in the table below (figures correct as at 07 June 21). These leases are competitively tendered to ensure that Defence receives value for money.
The MOD is committed to meeting Government targets for zero emission cars and is developing its infrastructure to support a significant increase in electric vehicles which will roll out in coming years. To avoid paying early lease termination fees, the MOD uses milestone adjustments during contract term to transition from internal combustion engine vehicles to both electric and hybrid vehicles.
Vehicle Type |
|
Internal Combustion Engine | 7,066 |
Electric | 225 |
Hybrid | 411 |
TOTAL | 7,702 |
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what Fleet Solid Support ship capacity is sailing with the HMS Queen Elizabeth Carrier Strike Group.
Answered by James Heappey
RFA Fort Victoria has been allocated to the Carrier Strike Group as the Fleet Solid Support ship.
She will provide vital support to CSG21 by acting as a stores ship and a fleet tanker. RFA Fort Victoria is fitted with four central replenishment rigs, so she can replenish two warships simultaneously with fuel and stores and has another refuelling rig at her rear. She also has a large flight-deck, hangar and maintenance facilities for helicopters.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Enhanced Pallet Load System trucks the British Army has; and where those vehicles were manufactured.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The British Army's UK fleet consists of 559 Enhanced Pallet Load System (EPLS) vehicles, all originally manufactured in Austria with the majority acquired between 2008 and 2013.
In November 2018 work began to upgrade 382 of the EPLS 15-tonne Support Vehicle platforms. The conversions took place in Manchester, with all upgraded vehicles now in service.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to issue the invitation to tender for the Fleet Solid Support Ships; and what steps he will take to ensure the use of British steel in those ships.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Contract Notice and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire is planned for issue in spring 2021 and consideration of the responses received will determine the exact date for issue of the Invitation To Negotiate.
It is too early to say what the steel requirement for the Fleet Solid Support ships might be. Responsibility for sourcing steel for the ships will rest with the prime contractor, who will make their steel requirements known to the UK steel industry in line with Cabinet Office guidelines.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with Boeing on the E-7 Wedgetail programme.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
In common with other projects of this size and complexity, officials are in regular contact with their opposite numbers in Boeing on a range of subjects relating to the E-7 programme.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what risk assessment has been made for in-service support of (a) complex warships, (b) submarines and (c) naval base services with relation to the future life extension requirements of the Vanguard; what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of ageing critical infrastructure and complexities around logistics and transport on (i) cost and (ii) equipment in-service dates.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Future Maritime Support Programme employs a full suite of professional project and programme management planning and risk tools. The provision of services under this programme is currently under commercial tender and negotiation and I am therefore withholding the requested information as its disclosure at this time would be prejudicial to the commercial interests of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and for the purpose of safeguarding National Security more widely.
I am, however, able to confirm that the MOD is currently delivering a significant programme of recapitalisation updates for HM Naval Base Clyde nuclear infrastructure assets, to the value of some £1.6 billion. This programme is scheduled to complete by 2032 and will deliver around £0.425 billion of investment in nuclear assets on the Clyde by the end of this financial year.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what risk assessment has been undertaken as part of the planning and consultation process on the move from a single source supplier at HMND Clyde to multiple contractors; and what assessment he has made of the potential merits of that move on the delivery of integrated operations in support of CASD.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Future Maritime Support Programme employs a full suite of professional project and programme management planning and risk tools. The provision of services under this programme is currently under commercial tender and negotiation and I am therefore withholding the requested information as its disclosure at this time would be prejudicial to the commercial interests of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and for the purpose of safeguarding National Security more widely.
I am, however, able to confirm that the MOD is currently delivering a significant programme of recapitalisation updates for HM Naval Base Clyde nuclear infrastructure assets, to the value of some £1.6 billion. This programme is scheduled to complete by 2032 and will deliver around £0.425 billion of investment in nuclear assets on the Clyde by the end of this financial year.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the health and safety record over the course of the Maritime Support Delivery Framework.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Ministry of Defence takes the health and safety practices of its industrial partners extremely seriously and we expect suppliers to comply with all applicable regulatory and legal requirements.
The health and safety performance of contractors working on the Maritime Support Delivery Framework Contract is routinely monitored as part of contractual governance provisions. The contractors are also independently regulated by the Health and Safety Executive and, for the nuclear sites at HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport, the Office for Nuclear Regulation.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what measures have been included in the Future Maritime Support programme contract to mitigate the future life extension requirements of the Vanguard and ageing critical infrastructure and complexities around logistics and transport for the in-service support of (a) complex warships, (b) submarines and (c) naval base services.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The Future Maritime Support Programme employs a full suite of professional project and programme management planning and risk tools. The provision of services under this programme is currently under commercial tender and negotiation and I am therefore withholding the requested information as its disclosure at this time would be prejudicial to the commercial interests of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and for the purpose of safeguarding National Security more widely.
I am, however, able to confirm that the MOD is currently delivering a significant programme of recapitalisation updates for HM Naval Base Clyde nuclear infrastructure assets, to the value of some £1.6 billion. This programme is scheduled to complete by 2032 and will deliver around £0.425 billion of investment in nuclear assets on the Clyde by the end of this financial year.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many companies are contracted to deliver in-service support of (a) complex warships, (b) submarines and (c) naval base services as part of the Maritime Support Delivery Framework; and how many companies are planned to deliver the Future Maritime Support Programme.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
Most onshore support services at HM Naval Bases, which support HM ships and submarines, are managed under the Maritime Support Delivery Framework contracts. These two contracts cover a wide range of services and are managed on behalf of the Ministry of Defence by our Prime Contractors, Babcock and BAE Systems.
Babcock is contracted to support the Naval Bases at Devonport and Clyde, while BAE Systems supports the Naval Base at Portsmouth. Both Babcock and BAE Systems sub-contract these services further, but the Ministry of Defence does not hold information on these sub-contracts centrally.
The provision of services under the Future Maritime Support Programme is currently under commercial tender and negotiation. As a result, at this stage, the number of providers is unknown.