Tag: Emily Thornberry

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of patients referred to the Fit for Work service since its launch have since returned to work.

Justin Tomlinson

An evaluation strategy is in place for Fit for Work. As part of this, a formal process evaluation is being undertaken. The formal evaluation will include feedback from employee users of the service, GPs and employers. Return to work will also be covered. Monthly performance group meetings take place between the Department and the providers in both England/Wales and Scotland together with weekly meetings to discuss management information and performance issues.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in which areas the digital service for universal credit is (a) in operation and (b) expected to be in operation by April 2016.

Priti Patel

The digital service is currently in operation in areas of Sutton, Croydon and London Bridge. Between January and April 2016 Hounslow, Musselburgh, Purley, Thornton Heath and Great Yarmouth will begin delivering the full Universal Credit service.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-01-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many nations have Maritime Patrol Aircraft based at RAF Lossiemouth; how many Maritime Patrol Aircraft are based at RAF Lossiemouth; and which nations have had Maritime Patrol Aircraft based at RAF Lossiemouth at any point in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Penny Mordaunt

There are no Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) permanently based at RAF Lossiemouth. However, following the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review the Government announced that the United Kingdom would purchase a fleet of nine Boeing P-8A Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft which will be based at RAF Lossiemouth.

Over the course of 2015 MPA from the United States, Canada, France and Germany were temporarily deployed to RAF Lossiemouth. We do not discuss the detail of such maritime operations as this would, or would likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24141, how many (a) unauthorised entries to military bases and (b) thefts or losses of classified material took place in (i) 2009, (ii) 2010, (iii) 2011, (iv) 2012 and (v) 2013.

Mark Lancaster

The number of security incidents recorded within the Ministry of Defence in each of the years in question is set out in the table below.

Year	Unauthorised entries to Military Bases	Thefts or losses of classified material
2009	8	327
2010	13	384
2011	21	365
2012	12	327
2013	13	379

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 24277, how many Sea King (a) Mk3, (b) Mk3a, (c) Mk4 and (d) Mk5 aircraft are planned to be taken out of service in 2016; and what plans the Government has to replace those assets.

Mr Philip Dunne

A total of 32 Sea King aircraft are planned to be taken out of service during 2016:

10 Mk3

2 Mk3a

9 Mk4

11 Mk5

The Search and Rescue role provided by these Sea King helicopters is to be delivered by contractor-provided services. Other roles delivered by these aircraft will transition to the Merlin fleet operated by the Royal Navy.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many civilian personnel were deployed in each operational theatre overseas in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Penny Mordaunt

In the last 12 months (13 February 2015 to 12 February 2016), 71 UK civil servants have deployed on behalf of the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to provide direct support to military operations. A breakdown of locations is provided below.

Country	Number of UK civil servants deployed on behalf of the MOD
Afghanistan	42
Sierra Leone	1
United Arab Emirates	14
Bahrain	2
Qatar	8
Italy	2
United States of America	2

Since June 2015, an average of 88 UK contractors has been deployed on military operations by the MOD at any one time. A total 12-month figure could not be provided as details of changes to individual post-holders are not held centrally, and information is not held for the period before June 2015.

Country	Average number of UK civilian contractors deployed by the MOD
Afghanistan	36
Gulf	44
Iraq	6
Nigeria	2

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 4.47 of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence Review 2015, Cm 9161, which of the two Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers will be adapted to support amphibious capability.

Mr Philip Dunne

The two new Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) aircraft carriers, currently under construction in Rosyth have a planned service life of 50 years each. They will be capable of a spectrum of roles including battlefield helicopter support to littoral operations. The Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 made provision to enhance this capability in the QEC aircraft carriers.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the amount spent was from the public purse was on decommissioning and disposal of (a) HMS Ark Royal and (b) HMS Illustrious.

Mr Philip Dunne

Much of the work to decommission Royal Navy ships is undertaken using contracts that provide support services for all ships conducting Fleet activities at HM Naval Base, Portsmouth. Costs are not attributed to individual vessels.

Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) was responsible for the removal of classified equipment and known hazardous materials from the former HMS ARK ROYAL. This work cost £0.7 million. Similar work is being carried out on the former HMS ILLUSTRIOUS which has yet to be sold. Expenditure incurred to date is £0.5 million.

The Disposal Services Authority (DSA), part of DE&S, disposes of defence equipment that is surplus to requirement. DSA costs are not attributed to individual platforms and information on these ships is not held in the format requested.

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 26719, how many civilian staff posts have been removed to date as a result of (a) the Army 2020 plan and (b) outsourcing logistics to Leidos; and how many such posts are subject to planned reductions over the remaining course of each such programme.

Mark Lancaster

The Civilian Structures Project (CSP) was established to align the civilian workforce structure with Army 2020 changes; under this programme, 577 civilian posts have been removed to date. The Army is currently undertaking a study to establish the necessary refinements to Army 2020 capability and structures to meet the requirements of the Strategic Defence and Security Review. Further work on CSP is on hold while this study is conducted.

In August 2015, 1,130 civilian posts transferred to the Delivery Partner, Team Leidos, under Transfer of Undertaking Protection of Employment (TUPE). Future staffing levels are a matter for Team Leidos.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-03-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many days there have been (a) five, (b) four, (c) three, (d) two, (e) one and (f) zero Border Force Cutters conducting active patrols in UK territorial waters in the last 12 months.

James Brokenshire

Border Force does not record individual vessel patrols as this does not represent the full activity of a Border Force vessel. Border Force vessels operate 365 days per year and have maintained a three cutter capability in UK waters throughout the last 12 months.