Tag: Emily Thornberry

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Sea King HC4, (b) Wildcat, (c) Gazelle, (d) Apache, (e) Chinook HC2/3, (f) Puma HC2 and (g) Merlin Mk 3/3A helicopters are (i) in the Forward Available Fleet, (ii) in the Sustainment Fleet and (iii) classed as Short-Term Unserviceable.

Mr Philip Dunne

The Forward Fleet comprises aircraft which are serviceable and those which are short-term unserviceable.

The Sustainment Fleet numbers represent those aircraft in our Depth Fleet, which comprises aircraft which are undergoing planned depth maintenance or upgrade programmes.

Short-term unserviceable aircraft are undergoing minor works, forward maintenance or any other unforeseen rectification or technical inspection work that can arise on a day-to-day basis. Figures shown are the average for December 2015, the most recent data available.

Query	Sea King HC4	Wildcat BRH Mk1	Wildcat HMA Mk2	Gazelle	Apache	Chinook HC2/3 Note 1	Puma HC2	Merlin Mk 3/3A
Forward Available Fleet	7	19	14	19	32	0	13	17
Sustainment Fleet	0	8	3	7	18	0	10	8
Short-Term Unserviceable	2	12	7	12	13	0	4	10

Note 1:

All Chinook HC2/2a aircraft have undergone modification with new cockpit avionics and are now HC4 variants. In December 2015 there were 26 HC4 aircraft in the forward fleet and 12 in sustainment.

The (eight) Chinook HC3 were all removed from the forward fleet last year and are undergoing modification with new cockpit avionics and a new digital automatic flight control system. Once modified, these aircraft become Chinook HC5 variants.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department’s press release, UK to step up NATO maritime commitment, published on 10 February 2016, which Type 45 Destroyer will be deployed to NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 1 in October 2016.

Penny Mordaunt

The Secretary of State did announce that the Royal Navy will deploy a Type 45 Destroyer to NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 1 in October 2016.

However, I am withholding details of the ship that will be deployed as such a disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 4.45 of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence Review 2015, when he expects to announce further details of the Government’s proposed new armed forces offer.

Penny Mordaunt

In order to deliver the battle-winning forces which the UK needs for the future, we are looking at developing a new "offer" for new joiners into the Armed Forces which meets the expectations of future recruits. It will ensure our future expenditure on personnel is sustainable and applied in the most efficient way. We have now begun the conceptual stages of evidence gathering and initial policy development which will determine whether the concept of a new offer is viable and when it could be delivered. We will engage stakeholders including the Armed Forces Pay Review Body as usual on our proposals when they mature. The new offer for new joiners will not impact on existing Service personnel.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-03-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 26688, how much his Department spent in contracts on commercial civilian guarding in each of the last six years.

Mark Lancaster

This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-03-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is his policy for the House to be given an opportunity to debate in advance any decision to use his Department’s cyber strike capability.

Penny Mordaunt

We continue to develop the ability of our Armed Forces to deploy a broad range of offensive cyber capabilities as an integrated part of military operations. As with other sensitive defence capabilities, we do not reveal specific details in order to safeguard national security. As we have previously made clear in the context of the war powers convention, we do not propose to define the circumstances in which we would consult Parliament about the use of particular military capabilities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress the UN Support Mission in Libya has made on resolving the competing claims for (a) chairmanship of the Libyan Investment Authority and (b) governorship of the Central Bank of Libya.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

These matters are questions of Libyan sovereignty and we fully support the new Government of National Accord in resolving them.

Resolution 2259 (2015), supported by the UK and adopted by the Security Council on 23 December 2015, highlighted the importance of these institutions continuing to function for the benefit of all Libyans, and stressed the need for the Government of National Accord to exercise sole and effective oversight over the National Oil Company, the Central Bank of Libya, and the Libyan Investment Authority as a matter of urgency, without prejudice to future constitutional arrangements pursuant to the Libyan Political Agreement.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-04-14.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what procedures his Department had in place to monitor any changes in estimates of the cost of the Successor submarine programme during preparations for his Budget statement in March 2016.

Greg Hands

The Treasury maintains a regular and frequent dialogue with the Ministry of Defence over the costs of all significant elements of defence spending, including the Successor programme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government has taken to encourage (a) China, (b) Egypt, (c) India, (d) Iran, (e) Israel, (f) North Korea, (g) Pakistan and (h) the United States to ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty in the last 12 months.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

During the last 12 months we have continued to urge the eight remaining Annex II states who have not yet ratified the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty to do so. We have worked through the EU to promote the entry into force and universalisation of the Treaty. We made a statement and co-sponsored a resolution supporting the entry into force of the Treaty at the 70th Session of the UN General Assembly. The G7 Foreign Ministers’ declaration at their meeting in Hiroshima was clear that all states should sign and ratify the treaty without delay and without conditions.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 19 April 2016 to Question 34085, whether any UK discussions with the Saudi Arabian authorities regarding the alleged use of cluster munitions in Yemen have led to confirmation that such munitions have been used by Saudi Arabian armed forces on any occasion.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

We are aware of reports of the alleged use of Cluster Munitions by the Coalition in Yemen . We have raised this issue with the Saudi Arabian authorities and, in line with our obligations under the Convention on Cluster Munitions, continue to encourage Saudi Arabia, as a non-party to the Convention, to accede to it.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of households that will move into work as a result of moving onto universal credit by 2020.

Priti Patel

Once fully rolled-out, up to 300,000 more people are likely to be in work as a result of Universal Credit (UC).

Evidence from “Universal Credit at Work Spring 2015” show claimants are more likely to be in work, spend more time in work, and earn more than their counterparts on Jobseekers Allowance.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/405921/uc-at-work-spring-2015.pdf

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