Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of the number of (a) gas masks and (b) escape hoods required to protect Kurdish Peshmerga forces against chemical attack during their advance on Mosul; what the estimated cost of supplying such material is; how quickly such equipment could reach such forces; what assessment his Department has made of the potential military effect of the use by Daesh of its (i) chlorine and (ii) mustard gas stocks against unprotected Peshmerga fighters; and if he will make it his policy to supply such protective equipment without delay.

The Peshmerga are playing a valuable role in the fight against Daesh in Iraq. The support and training provided by the Global Coalition, including the UK, has been a key contributor to their success. The Coalition coordinates all requests for equipment and support to ensure coherence, and has provided more than 24,000 protective chemical masks during training for the Iraqi security forces and Peshmerga in preparation for the Mosul offensive. The Coalition continues to keep this potential threat under review.