Tag: Douglas Chapman

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-03-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what investigatory methods his Department uses for reports of potential breaches of international humanitarian law by UK allies in Yemen.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The Ministry of Defence monitors incidents of alleged International Humanitarian Law (IHL) violations using all available information which in turn informs our overall assessment of IHL compliance in Yemen. We consider a range of information from government sources, foreign governments, the media and international non-governmental organisations regarding reports of potential breaches of IHL.

We regularly raise the importance of compliance with IHL with the Saudi Arabian Government and other members of the military Coalition. The UK is not a member of the Saudi-led Coalition. British personnel are not involved in carrying out strikes, directing or conducting operations in Yemen or selecting targets and are not involved in the Saudi targeting decision-making process. However we have provided training and advice to Saudi Arabia to ensure continued compliance with IHL and minimise civilian casualties.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-04-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with which countries the UK has signed a defence (a) treaty, (b) formal agreement, (c) Memorandum of Understanding and (d) Letter of Intent in each year since 2011.

Mr Julian Brazier

The Ministry of Defence has signed several hundred Treaties, Agreements, Memoranda of Understandings and Letters of Intent with foreign governments since 2011. These agreements are a key part of our defence engagement work and a list of the countries that are party to these agreements will be deposited in the Library of the House shortly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to safeguard Royal Navy submarines from risks posed by underwater drones.

Mr Philip Dunne

The Government takes its responsibilities for maintaining the integrity of our submarine fleet extremely seriously and dedicates considerable resource to ensuring that the credibility and standards for operational effectiveness will continue to be met. Our submarine fleet will not be rendered obsolete by new technologies, including developments in unmanned underwater vehicle technology. I am withholding further details as publication would prejudice or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 46000, when the pre-concept phase activity for the General Purpose Frigate program began.

Harriett Baldwin

The pre-concept phase activity for the General Purpose Frigate programme began in November 2015, following the publication of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2015-10-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the costs of infrastructure improvements at RAF Waddington were in each year from 2010-11 to 2014-15.

Mark Lancaster

The costs of infrastructure improvements at RAF Waddington in each financial year from 2010-11 to 2014-15 are shown in the following table:

Financial Year	Grand Total
2010-11	£1,494,929.99
2011-12	£2,794,486.46
2012-13	£2,503,485.61
2013-14	£1,044,565.26
2014-15	£18,857,704.44
Grand Total	£26,695,171.76

The significant increase in Financial Year 2014-15 is due to the Waddington boiler replacement work, the upgrade of Single Living Accommodation, and the start of the construction phases of the reconstruction and resurfacing of the runway and hangar refurbishments.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2015-11-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what modifications his Department is making to the flight deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth to allow the safe landing of F35 aircraft.

Mr Philip Dunne

The ability of the Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) Aircraft Carrier to support F-35B vertical landings has been incorporated into the design from the outset. The cost of preparing the flight deck was included in the revised cost of £6.2 billion announced by the previous Defence Secretary, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond), on 6 November 2013, (Official Report, column 251-254).

For information on the modifications being made to the flight deck of the QEC Aircraft Carrier, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 12 June 2014 (Official Report, column 237W) to the right hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-01-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has to lease US Air Force Poseidon P-8 aircraft prior to the entry into service of the UK P-8 aircraft in 2019-20.

Mr Philip Dunne

There are currently no plans to lease P-8 aircraft.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of potential risks to the safety and security of Royal Navy aircraft carriers being held at anchor offshore in Bahrain.

Mr Philip Dunne

The security and logistical implications of the Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers while on operations overseas are subject to continual assessment and review. Irrespective of berthing or anchoring arrangements, it is normal business to conduct threat assessments prior to and during all port visits and deployed maintenance periods. This has been and will continue to be no different for Mina Salman port, and other port facilities in Bahrain.

The Department does not disclose details of security risks and assessments pertaining to deployed operations as disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what work will be required on each of the Daring Class Type 45 Destroyers in the fleet due to electrical and propulsion faults; and what estimate he has made of the cost of such work.

Mr Philip Dunne

A number of measures to improve the reliability of the Type 45 Power and Propulsion systems have been identified and the ongoing programme to implement these changes continues to deliver positive results. In addition, and as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, we are committed to improving system resilience by adding upgraded diesel generators to provide further electrical generation capacity. Alternative technical options and a variety of delivery models are currently being explored with several competing industrial partners.

A number of early modifications were implemented under the Type 45 Destroyer Contract for Availability arrangement with BAE Systems at no additional cost to the Ministry of Defence. The total cost and timetable for implementing the diesel generator upgrade will be determined at the main investment decision. I am withholding details of our current time and cost estimates as premature disclosure of this information could prejudice the commercial interests of the Department.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-02-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the financial health of the Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Company and its potential effect on the MARS programme.

Mr Philip Dunne

Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) continues to progress the build of all four ships under the Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability Tanker contract. The Ministry of Defence is aware of reports in the specialist press regarding financial losses reported in the shipbuilding industry, including DSME. We continue to closely monitor this situation with DSME, noting that this is primarily a matter for the company.