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The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of servicemen and women recruited from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Penny Mordaunt

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 18 April 2016 to Question 33630 to the hon. Member for Barnsley Central (Dan Jarvis).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the intake of BAME servicemen and women was as a proportion of total intake for each year from 2006 to the latest available figures.

Penny Mordaunt

The information held by the Ministry of Defence is as follows:

Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) intake as a proportion of Total UK Regulars¹ Intake each year April 2008-April 2015.

Source: Defence Statistics (Tri-Service)

Older information is not available as the current systems date back to 2007 only. Information on Reserves intake is due to be released as part of the UK Armed Forces Biannual Diversity Statistics on 26 May 2016. The most recent data can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-armed-forces-biannual-diversity-statistics-2015

Notes

¹UK Regular Forces comprises Full-time personnel but does not include Gurkhas, Full Time Reserve Service personnel and Reservists. Percentages exclude those personnel with an unknown ethnicity.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) status and (b) purpose is of the Defence Diversity and Inclusion Programme established in September 2013.

Penny Mordaunt

The Defence Diversity and Inclusion Programme (DDIP) is a high priority change programme aimed at increasing the diversity of our workforce – both military and civilian. The Defence Board agreed in 2014 that the DDIP should be regarded as core business, on a par with other Defence Transformation activities.

The main purpose of the DDIP is to ensure that Ministry of Defence outputs are delivered by the right mix of capable and motivated people that appropriately represent the breadth of the society we exist to defend, now and in the future. The programme continues to drive real change in the core areas of leadership and culture; recruitment; retention and progression; and outreach, seeking to remove barriers where they might exist.

The benefits of this will be better access to talent for Defence’s workforce and improving the Armed Forces’ ability to achieve overall recruitment levels; improved decision making as a result of the different perspectives that come from a more diverse workforce; greater levels of cultural understanding so that we are more effective and trusted in our international operations and activities; improved workforce engagement and morale; and better relations with, and support from, the wide range of communities within British society as a result of a more representative workforce.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Lammy on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Answer of 4 March 2015 to Question 225425, what progress has been made on the assessment of the feasibility of the creation of a Sikh regiment.

Penny Mordaunt

The Armed Forces are working to increase the recruitment of military personnel from all ethnic and religious backgrounds and have made significant progress towards the set target of 10% Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic enlistment to training by 2020. Measures have also been implemented to improve mutual understanding between the Army and the full range of UK communities in order to build better relationships between communities and military personnel.

The Ministry of Defence continues to look at all options relating to the recognition of Sikh values and traditions in our Armed Forces. Service personnel already benefit from a thriving British Armed Forces Sikh Association and a Sikh chaplain to the military; work is ongoing to ensure that policy supports the active participation of the Sikh religion.