Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Goldie on 14 September (HL7741), whether the Merchant Navy Reserve was disbanded on (1) 15 December 2003 upon the implementation of SI 2003/2861, or (2) another date.

The Explanatory Note to The Merchant Shipping (Merchant Navy Reserve) (Revocation) Regulations 2003 (SI 2003/2861), that came into force on 15 December 2003, states that, following a series of Ministry of Defence reviews, the Merchant Navy Reserve scheme was disbanded on 23 May 2000.

I would like to take this opportunity to clarify the advice provided in my earlier answer. All Merchant Navy Reservists would have had the opportunity to apply to join the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR). However, the Merchant Navy Reserve did not fold, as an organisation, in to the RNR.