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Written Question
Veterans: Radiation Exposure
Tuesday 11th February 2025

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Written Statement of 21 May 2024 entitled Nuclear Test Veterans: Atomic Weapons Establishment Records, HCWS45, when he plans to publish the results of the review into the historic files in the ES and AB series relating to the UK’s nuclear weapons programme.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

Since the security review commenced in 2018, almost 70,000 of around 74,000 records withdrawn from public access have been released back to the National Archives. Updates on the progress of the review can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-nuclear-archive-records


Written Question
Ministry of Defence: Recruitment
Friday 7th February 2025

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2024 to Question 18945 on Ministry of Defence: Recruitment, how his Department measures the performance of those executive search firms.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

For Senior Civil Servant (SCS) appointments using an Executive Search firm, performance is measured as described in the commercial agreement. Each commercial agreement (via the cross-Government Executive Search RM6290 framework) includes clear terms of business and expectations, and fees are only paid on completion of agreed deliverables.

All SCS recruitment activity, including those managed by an Executive Search firm, is overseen by either a Civil Service Commissioner (SCS Pay Bands 2 to 4) or a Ministry of Defence Campaign Manager (SCS Pay Band 1), including regular meetings with appointed Executive Search firms throughout various operational stages to check in on process, candidate support and adherence to policy.


Written Question
Ministry of Defence: Recruitment
Tuesday 17th December 2024

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many private recruitment agencies his Department uses to fill senior vacancies; what the potential cost to the public purse is of these services; and what steps his Department is taking to monitor performance.

Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)

To date in financial year 2024-25, there have been three permanent Senior Civil Servant (SCS) Payband 1 or 2 recruitment campaigns, and three SCS Payband 3 or 4 campaigns that have engaged a private sector Executive Search firm. The cost of these services is commercial-in-confidence so cannot be provided at this time.

Top Level Budgets in the Ministry of Defence (MOD) hold individual commercial contracts with Executive Search firms and are responsible for monitoring performance, with the MOD also overseeing this centrally.


Written Question
AWE: Databases
Monday 5th February 2024

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have the necessary security clearance to access the (i) Merlin database and (ii) documentation stored on the Merlin database pertaining to the nuclear test programme and its veterans.

Answered by Andrew Murrison

As set out in the answer I gave on 23 January to Question 10374 from the right hon. Member for Wentworth and Dearne (John Healey), seven officials at the Atomic Weapons Establishment have appropriate clearance and are authorised to access the Merlin database.

All Ministers hold clearances appropriate to their roles and responsibilities. As the Minister responsible in the Ministry of Defence for veteran's affairs I retain the relevant clearances to view the information retained on Merlin.


Written Question
Ministry of Defence: Freedom of Information
Wednesday 22nd November 2023

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether classified documents retained by his Department under a Lord Chancellor’s Instruction citing a national security exemption are among the files available to be searched when his Department receives a Freedom of Information request which may include personal data held within it.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence

All classified documents that have been retained by the Ministry of Defence under the national security exemptions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Data Protection Act 2018 are available to be searched on receipt of Data Subject Access Requests, Freedom of Information Requests and questions to the Secretary of State or other Ministers in the Department.

If, after location and review of the classified documents, it is deemed that release of any/all of the information would still prejudice national security, then it may continue to be withheld by law.


Written Question
Ministry of Defence: Disclosure of Information
Wednesday 22nd November 2023

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether classified documents retained by his department under a Lord Chancellor’s Instruction citing a national security exemption are among the files available to be searched when his Department receives a Data Subject Access Request which may include personal data held within it.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence

All classified documents that have been retained by the Ministry of Defence under the national security exemptions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Data Protection Act 2018 are available to be searched on receipt of Data Subject Access Requests, Freedom of Information Requests and questions to the Secretary of State or other Ministers in the Department.

If, after location and review of the classified documents, it is deemed that release of any/all of the information would still prejudice national security, then it may continue to be withheld by law.


Written Question
Ministry of Defence: Disclosure of Information
Wednesday 22nd November 2023

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether classified documents retained by his Department under a Lord Chancellor’s Instruction citing a national security exemption are among the files available to be searched when his Department receives a question to the Secretary of State or other Minister in the Department.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence

All classified documents that have been retained by the Ministry of Defence under the national security exemptions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Data Protection Act 2018 are available to be searched on receipt of Data Subject Access Requests, Freedom of Information Requests and questions to the Secretary of State or other Ministers in the Department.

If, after location and review of the classified documents, it is deemed that release of any/all of the information would still prejudice national security, then it may continue to be withheld by law.


Written Question
Veterans: Radiation Exposure
Monday 13th March 2023

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

If he will bring forward proposals to allow veterans to apply for access to their biological monitoring tests conducted during their service.

Answered by Andrew Murrison

Veterans or members of their family are already entitled to request information that may be held by the Ministry of Defence, including medical test results, through Subject Access Requests. Information is provided on request to individuals, or representatives acting on their behalf, under General Data Protection Regulation, Chapter 3, Article 15 – Right of access.


Written Question
Veterans: Radiation Exposure
Monday 24th October 2022

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals has discussed the updated application for medallic recognition for British Nuclear Test Veterans in between August and October 2022; when a decision on that matter will be published.

Answered by James Heappey

There is a well-established process in place for the approval of historic military medals claims. These are considered by the independent Advisory-Military Sub-Committee, which then provides advice to the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals (HD Committee). All recommendations regarding the awarding of official medals must go through proper due process and will be announced in the usual way.


Written Question
Nuclear Weapons: Testing
Monday 28th February 2022

Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Labour - Salford)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the report to Prime Minister Churchill’s Cabinet, and minutes thereof, on the result of the British atomic test at Monte Bello in 1952, as referenced in the Official Report, 4 February 1983, vol 36 c209W, has been released under the 30-year rule.

Answered by Leo Docherty

This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

The British atomic test at Monte Bello in 1952 was the first test of a British atomic device and consequently there are many records on this subject. Some have been released to The National Archives, but many contain sensitive technical information about the United Kingdom's nuclear weapons programme and are retained. It has not been possible to determine which record may contain the report and minutes in question, due to the limited details on them and the time that has elapsed since the answer referenced in Official Report, 4 February 1983.