Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that parents and guardians of soldiers can attend passing out parades during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by James Heappey
The Ministry of Defence has issued guidance to the Armed Forces for the conduct of ceremonial events, including passing out parades, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Risks are carefully assessed and events must satisfy all relevant public health regulations and guidance. This allows these events to continue taking place with a limited audience.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, further to the Answer of 23 October 2020 to Question 104201, what the contribution rates are for (a) employers, (b) employees in service personnel pensions and for what reason neither rate is shown on the pay slips of service personnel.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
The Armed Forces’ Pension Schemes (AFPS) are non-contributory. Occupational pensions are neither a source of pay nor a source of income until the point at which the pension becomes payable, which is why the rate is not shown on pay slips. We send annual Pension Benefit Information Statements to our personnel, but we recognise there is scope to improve how we communicate the benefits of the AFPS, including through the planned creation of a digital portal for members to access pension benefit information.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there is a comprehensive list of UK armed forces personnel who died in service, by conflict, that includes their birthplace and final address in the UK.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
Information on deaths in the UK Armed Forces including birthplace and conflict, is held in the Departments centralised database from 1984 to present. Data prior to 1984 including birthplace and conflict, is held on the Armed Forces Memorial database. Neither database holds information on an individual's final address in the UK.
Information on an individual's final address is held separately in the Joint Personnel Administration (JPA) system from April 2007 onwards and is not currently linked to either death database. Prior to 2007, this information is held in individual personnel files.
A roll of honour is available in the public domain and can be found at the following website: http://veterans.mod.uk/. Whilst the roll of honour lists all of the individuals whose names are inscribed on the National memorial in Staffordshire, it does not confirm the individual's birthplace or whether they died in conflict.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish (a) a template service personnel payslip and (b) an example payslip for a soldier at the rank of private with three years' service.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
I will write to the hon. Member, and will include the requested examples.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Main Battle Tanks his Department has; and how many of those tanks are fully operational.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
There are 227 Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks. We are unable to disclose the number that are fully operational, as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent comparative assessment he has made of the viability of maintaining the continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent with a (a) three and (b) four submarine nuclear weapons fleet.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The United Kingdom's nuclear deterrence posture is continually reviewed to ensure we can meet the current security threats. Continuous At Sea Deterrence requires four nuclear-armed submarines to ensure at least one is on patrol at all times, taking account of the cycle of deployment, training, and routine and unplanned maintenance. Three submarines cannot deliver an assured deterrent against current policy.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - North West Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of the castings (a) in the initial production and (b) for replacement parts of the new Boxer will be made in the UK.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The supply and integration of UK equipment sub-contracts for Boxer is progressing in line with ARTEC, the Prime Contractor's, commitment that 60% by value of the contract is planned to come from the UK. ARTEC is responsible for the award of equipment sub-contracts and is still in the process of developing its supply chain.