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Column 519
Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 26 October 1993
DEFENCE
Gibraltar
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information Her Majesty's Government have been given since 1963 by the French authorities on the degree of radioactive contamination suffered by British citizens resident in Gibraltar.
Mr. Aitken : None. I am not aware of any such contamination that would warrant investigation.
French Nuclear Tests
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will ask his French counterpart for information provided by the French nuclear authorities under article 34 of the Euratom treaty since 1963 in connection with French atmospheric nuclear tests in Reganne, Algeria.
Mr. Aitken : No. Article 34 of the Euratom treaty does not apply to military activities.
Inhumane Weapons
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to ratify the 1981 inhumane weapons convention.
Mr. Hanley : I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. and learned Friend the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office gave to the hon. Member for Leyton (Mr. Cohen) on 22 October, Official Report, column 371.
Tornado Collision
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Tornado aircraft involved in the mid-air collision over Cumbria on 23 June was the same aircraft that overflew the village of Clayton, near Doncaster, South Yorkshire during its sortie.
Mr. Hanley : The Tornado involved in the mid-air collision was part of a two-aircraft formation ; neither aircraft passed near the village of Clayton. Their route took them some 40 nautical miles north of Clayton, on their westbound heading towards Cumbria.
Low Flying
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many operational low-flying sorties were authorised in (a) the northern Scotland tactical training area, and (b) the central Wales tactical training area in each month from (i) January 1979 to December 1987, (ii) November and December 1990 and (iii) from May 1992 to the latest date available.
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Mr. Hanley : Figures for operational low-flying sorties are not available. The numbers of operational low-flying movements authorised into the northern Scotland and central Wales tactical training areas in each month during the periods requested are set out in the table. A breakdown by month is not available for 1979.
|Northern Scotland|Central Wales
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1979
Total |664 |123
1980
January |262 |31
February |0 |0
March |6 |41
April |67 |67
May |0 |0
June |0 |0
July |0 |0
August |0 |0
September |0 |0
October |0 |0
November |130 |9
December |161 |23
|------- |-------
Total |626 |171
1981
January |175 |46
February |0 |0
March |15 |0
April |89 |0
May |0 |6
June |6 |7
July |0 |0
August |0 |0
September |251 |0
October |24 |0
November |0 |0
December |41 |0
|------- |-------
Total |601 |59
1982
January |0 |0
February |37 |0
March |136 |0
April |59 |0
May |2 |0
June |0 |0
July |0 |0
August |0 |0
September |0 |0
October |0 |4
November |0 |0
December |2 |0
|------- |-------
Total |236 |4
1983
January |48 |2
February |30 |0
March |41 |0
April |309 |0
May |90 |0
June |144 |0
July |79 |0
August |91 |50
September |98 |0
October |69 |0
November |349 |6
December |289 |13
|------- |-------
Total |1,637 |71
1984
January |3 |0
February |0 |11
March |67 |26
April |78 |10
May |30 |5
June |0 |4
July |23 |0
August |0 |0
September |0 |0
October |26 |8
November |163 |0
December |158 |0
|------- |-------
Total |548 |64
1985
January |194 |18
February |39 |11
March |26 |15
April |0 |0
May |0 |0
June |0 |0
July |0 |0
August |0 |0
September |0 |0
October |0 |0
November |0 |0
December |0 |0
|------- |-------
Total |259 |44
1986
January |250 |9
February |154 |6
March |16 |0
April |34 |0
May |0 |0
June |0 |0
July |16 |11
August |0 |0
September |28 |26
October |41 |11
November |0 |0
December |0 |0
|------- |-------
Total |539 |63
1987
January |0 |1
February |69 |20
March |99 |33
April |93 |175
May |0 |0
June |14 |2
July |8 |5
August |0 |0
September |21 |0
October |207 |4
November |7 |0
December |0 |2
|------- |-------
Total |518 |242
1990
November |210 |26
December |9 |9
1992
May |0 |33
June |248 |0
July |198 |0
August |6 |9
September |2 |0
October |0 |68
November |2 |26
December |26 |0
1993
January |64 |76
February |125 |12
March |103 |13
April |57 |51
May |12 |2
June |8 |0
July |0 |1
August |27 |3
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what sources of weather data for individual low flying areas are available to the tactical booking cell, RAF West Drayton, for onward transmission to aircrews ; and what changes have been made to the meteorological data collection facilities in low flying areas since 1979.
Mr. Hanley : The tactical booking cell, RAF West Drayton has no involvement in the transmission of weather data to aircrews. Before flying, aircrew receive a full and comprehensive meteorological briefing from the professional meteorological staff at their station. These staff have direct access to the facilities of the Meteorological Office at Bracknell.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many low -level training sorties were carried out by Royal Air Force V-bomber aircraft from Goose Bay, Labrador, in each year from 1963 to 1982.
Mr. Hanley : The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost and effort.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the changes made to the weather minima for visual flight rules operations in the United Kingdom low flying system since 1979.
Mr. Hanley : My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence will write to the hon. Member.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many low flying sorties were booked in the United Kingdom low flying system by aircraft from RAF Germany in each month from January 1992 to the latest available date, broken down by aircraft type.
Mr. Hanley : The numbers of sorties booked in the United Kingdom low flying system by aircraft from RAF Germany, which on 1 April 1993 was redesignated No. 2 Group RAF Strike Command, during the period from January 1992 to August 1993, the latest date for which data are available, are set out in the table.
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|Harrier |Tornado |Jaguar |Chinook |Other helicopters|Total
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1992
January |58 |343 |0 |0 |0 |401
February |188 |349 |0 |0 |0 |537
March |87 |479 |0 |0 |1 |567
April |85 |343 |0 |0 |0 |428
May |192 |241 |0 |2 |1 |436
June |230 |239 |0 |1 |0 |470
July |309 |243 |0 |0 |0 |552
August |61 |186 |0 |0 |0 |247
September |88 |170 |0 |0 |0 |258
October |180 |447 |0 |0 |0 |627
November |84 |186 |0 |1 |0 |271
December |110 |157 |26 |0 |10 |303
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |1,672 |3,383 |26 |4 |12 |5,097
1993
January |104 |300 |0 |0 |0 |404
February |247 |359 |0 |0 |0 |606
March |288 |483 |0 |0 |3 |774
April |29 |225 |0 |0 |0 |254
May |112 |255 |0 |2 |3 |372
June |181 |408 |0 |4 |0 |593
July |48 |251 |0 |1 |1 |301
August |52 |293 |0 |0 |1 |346
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |1,061 |2,574 |0 |7 |8 |3,650
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the minimum authorised altitude at which aircrew are trained to fly in (a) the tri-national Tornado training establishment and (b) each of the fast jet operational conversion units ; and what changes have taken place in these authorised minima since 1985.
Mr. Hanley : The minimum authorised heights at which aircrew are permitted to fly are as follows :
(a) Tri-national Tornado Training Establishment--500 ft. (b) Fast Jet Operational Conversion Units--250 ft.
The only change to have taken place in the authorised minima since 1985 occurred in 1991 when the authorised minimum height for all tri-national Tornado training establishment crews was raised from 250 ft to 500 ft.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what date the crew of the three Tornado F.3 aircraft of No. 29 squadron Royal Air Force which were involved in an unauthorised overflight of the community of Rigolet, Labrador, on 12 April, arrived at Canadian forces base Goose Bay.
Mr. Hanley : The aircrews of the aircraft concerned, which were staging through Canadian forces base Goose Bay en route to Alaska, arrived at Goose Bay on 12 April 1993. The incident occurred as they were approaching Goose Bay on their inward flight.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what warnings were given laterally and vertically to the low-flying military jet aircraft operating between approximately 2100 hours and 2130 hours on 10 August overflying the village of
Clayton-with-Frickley, South Yorkshire, that there was a helicopter operating in the vicinity ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Hanley : A number of Tornado aircraft from RAF Cottesmore conducted routine low-level training in the areas at about the times stated on 10 August. No military helicopters were booked to low fly in the area at the time, and no notification was received under the civil aircraft notification procedure or by other means of any civil aircraft activity.
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Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the dates, nationality, number and type of aircraft, host air base, and host unit for all exchange visits by foreign air force units to the United Kingdom over the last five years ; and what was the minimum authorised altitude for low flying by foreign aircrew involved in each of the exchange visits.
Mr. Hanley : The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost and effort.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what communications took place between Royal Air Force officers and the Canadian authorities between February and June 1990 concerning changes in the radii by which RAF aircrew deployed to Goose Bay for low-level training were required to avoid hunting and fishing camps.
Mr. Hanley : The local files containing details of this exchange have since been destroyed and the information requested is therefore not available. Any changes in flying regulations resulting from the exchange would have been reflected in the appropriate operations directives issued by the Canadian authorities at Goose Bay at the time.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what disciplinary action was taken against the leader of the formation of Tornado F3 aircraft from No. 29 squadron Royal Air Force which was involved in an unauthorised overflight of the community of Rigolet, Labrador, on 12 April.
Mr. Hanley : Local action was taken against the individual concerned, but it is not our practice to give details of such action. Letters of apology were sent to the mayor of Rigolet by the leader of the formation and by the Officer Commanding No. 29 Squadron.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what numerical limits on US Air Force aircraft low flying in the United Kingdom have been agreed with the United States authorities since 1990 in order to accommodate increased low flying by aircraft from RAF Germany.
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Mr. Hanley : A limit of 18,800 low flying sorties by Third United States Air Force aircraft in the United Kingdom low flying system was agreed for 1991 in order to provide leeway for increased low flying in the United Kingdom by aircraft from RAF Germany. Since then, Third United States Air Force low flying has reduced as a consequence of the withdrawal of aircraft from the United Kingdom and it has not been necessary to impose any specific ceiling on activity.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the numbers of low flying sorties, by each specified foreign air arm, in the United Kingdom low flying system for each month from January 1992 to the latest date available ; and how many of the sorties for each air arm were authorised to minimum heights of (a) 250 ft, (b) 500 ft and (c) 1,000 ft or above.
Column 526
Mr. Hanley : The numbers of sorties flown by aircraft of foreign air forces in the United Kingdom low flying system in each month from January 1992 to September 1993, the latest date for which information is available, are shown in the table. This flying is carried out under reciprocal arrangements which permit RAF aircraft to fly at low level in the countries concerned. The figures exclude low flying by foreign aircraft based in the United Kingdom.
Information on authorised minimum heights could be provided only at disproportionate cost and effort. In general, sorties will not have been authorised below 500 ft or, in the case of German and Belgian aircraft, 1,000 ft.
Column 525
|Jan. |Feb. |March|April|May |June |July |Aug. |Sep. |Oct. |Nov. |Dec. |Total
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1992
Netherlands |- |12 |115 |18 |139 |62 |74 |- |106 |32 |2 |2 |562
France |- |- |106 |2 |9 |30 |26 |- |194 |- |2 |22 |391
Italy |- |6 |4 |6 |86 |32 |54 |45 |6 |- |- |- |239
Denmark |10 |- |48 |32 |- |19 |25 |- |38 |- |- |24 |196
USA |- |4 |76 |1 |16 |1 |10 |- |52 |3 |8 |- |171
Germany |- |- |72 |26 |42 |26 |- |- |58 |4 |- |2 |230
Belgium |- |- |62 |- |23 |16 |62 |- |14 |2 |- |4 |183
Canada |- |- |- |2 |36 |2 |- |- |2 |3 |- |- |45
Spain |- |- |- |- |- |20 |- |- |- |- |- |- |20
Portugal |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |4 |2 |- |- |6
Turkey |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |0
-------
Total |10 |22 |483 |87 |351 |208 |251 |45 |474 |46 |12 |54 |2,043
1993
Netherlands |- |137 |- |8 |5 |- |21 |15 |12 |- |- |- |198
France |2 |88 |4 |2 |13 |- |- |12 |71 |- |- |- |192
Italy |- |4 |13 |- |- |24 |138 |43 |24 |- |- |- |246
Denmark |- |44 |6 |14 |4 |30 |8 |- |82 |- |- |- |188
USA |- |24 |- |21 |- |51 |- |35 |80 |- |- |- |211
Germany |- |- |6 |- |2 |- |16 |6 |82 |- |- |- |112
Belgium |- |- |4 |16 |- |- |- |5 |34 |- |- |- |59
Canada |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |0
Spain |- |- |- |- |- |14 |- |- |- |- |- |- |14
Portugal |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |27 |- |- |- |27
Turkey |- |- |- |- |4 |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |0
-------
Total |2 |297 |33 |61 |28 |119 |183 |116 |412 |0 |0 |0 |1,251
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the crew of the three Tornado F3 aircraft of No. 29 squadron Royal Air Force which were involved in an unauthorised overflight of the community of Rigolet, Labrador, on 12 April, had confirmed in writing prior to their flight that they had read and understood the Canadian forces base Goose Bay flying orders.
Mr. Hanley : The aircrew concerned had not read the Canadian Forces Goose Bay flying orders as they were not planning to operate out of Goose Bay other than for transit in and out of the air base, en route for Alaska.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the (a) recorded height and (b) aircraft type of the military fast jet aircraft that overflew the village of Clayton-with-Frickley in South Yorkshire at approximately 1359 hours on 22 September ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Hanley : A Tornado aircraft from RAF Cottesmore was conducting a routine low-level training sortie in the
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area at about the time stated on 22 September. We have no reason to believe the aircraft flew below the permitted height of 1000 ft.Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the minimum authorised altitude for the flight by three Tornado F3 aircraft of No. 29 squadron Royal Air Force from Canadian forces base Goose Bay which overflew the community of Rigolet, Labrador, at approximately 2 pm on 12 April.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many sorties by Royal Navy Sea Harrier aircraft in the United Kingdom low flying system at less than 250 ft were authorised in each year since 1979.
Mr. Hanley : The available statistics on operational low flying in the United Kingdom low-flying system do not distinguish between sorties flown by Royal Navy Sea Harrier aircraft and those flown by Royal Air Force Harrier aircraft. The Sea Harrier, however, carries out very little flying below 250 ft over land.
Column 527
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the crew of the three Tornado F3 aircraft of No. 29 squadron Royal Air Force which were involved in an unauthorised overflight of the community of Rigolet, Labrador, on 12 April received a briefing from Canadian forces personnel on the environmental restrictions in force for military flying from Goose Bay prior to their flight.
Mr. Hanley : The aircrews concerned did not receive a briefing from Canadian forces personnel before their flight, as the flight originated in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of the required continuation training flying hours of Royal Air Force Tornado aircrew consisted of low altitude flying (a) before and (b) since 1991.
Mr. Hanley : Until very recently the Tornado continuation training syllabus has not specified any minimum requirement for low-flying training. The general principle which has applied and continues to do so is that aircrew should carry out the minimum necessary low flying consistent with acquiring and maintaining the necessary skills. This position did not change in 1991.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the bird strike incidents involving Royal Air Force fast jet aircraft operating from Canadian forces base Goose Bay since 1990, providing for each incident (a) the date, (b) the location, (c) the height and speed of the aircraft, (d) the species or type of bird involved and (e) the category of damage to the aircraft.
Mr. Hanley : There has been only one recorded bird strike since 1 January 1990. On 31 August 1993, a Tornado GR1 hit an unidentified bird species 130 nautical miles north west of the Goose Bay airfield. There was no damage to the aircraft, which was operating at 120 ft and 420 knots.
Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many low- level sorties have been conducted from Canadian forces base, Goose Bay during 1993 by Royal Air Force Tornado F3 aircraft ; and if he will indicate the dates during which Tornado F3 aircraft were deployed at Goose Bay.
Mr. Hanley : Royal Air Force Tornado F3 aircraft carried out two low -level sorties at Goose Bay during 1993. These aircraft were deploying to Alaska, but staged through Goose Bay, and were there from 12 to 15 April.
Exercise Red Flag
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which RAF Tornado GR1 squadrons sent crews to participate in (a) the second two-week period and (b) the third two-week period of Exercise Red Flag 93-1 ; and where their pre-exercise work-up training was conducted in each case.
Mr. Hanley : No. 2 (Army Cooperation) Squadron sent crews to participate in the second two-week period of Exercise Red Flag 93-1, and carried out work-up training in the United Kingdom. No. 9 Squadron sent crews to participate in the third two-week period, and their work-up training was carried out at Goose Bay, Canada.
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the Tornado GR1 crews responsible for ferrying
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aircraft from Canadian forces base Goose Bay to Nellis air force base for Exercise Red Flag 93-1 in October 1992 also participated in the exercise ; and where their pre-exercise work-up training was conducted.Mr. Hanley : Yes. Pre-exercise work-up training was carried out at Goose Bay.
B52 Bombers (Near Miss)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he has yet received a report from the US Air Force on the incident in which two of its B52 bombers on a NATO exercise narrowly avoided a civilian helicopter near Aberdeen on 7 September ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Hanley : An initial report has been received from the United States air force and the joint air miss section is currently investigating this incident. The joint air miss working group's final report will be published in due course.
Overseas Staff and Premises
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the cost for the current financial year of his Department having (a) premises and (b) personnel overseas ; and what were the comparable figures for (a) 12, (b) 24, (c) 36 and (d) 48 months ago.
Mr. Hanley : The information is not held in the form requested. We are, however, currently forecasting a sum of £2.27 billion for 1993-94 for the operating costs incurred in countries where there are significant numbers of permanently garrisoned United Kingdom military personnel. The comparable figure for 1992-93 is £2.34 billion and for 1991-92 £2.50 billion. Figures for earlier years are not available.
Conservative Party Conference
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the total cost to his Department for arrangements arising from the 1993 Conservative party conference in Blackpool.
Mr. Hanley : In response to a routine request from the Lancashire police, a small number of specialist military personnel were deployed to assist the police in searching the conference area for explosive devices and on standby for potential bomb disposal tasks. No readily identifiable additional costs to the defence budget arose from this operation.
In addition, staff from Ministers' private offices visited Blackpool in order to deal with departmental work. Travel, subsistence and communications costs were incurred on defence votes.
Officers and Other Ranks Ratio
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the ratio of officers to other ranks in each of the three armed services in 1980 and 1992.
Mr. Hanley : The ratio of officers to other ranks in each of the three armed services in 1980 and 1992 were as follows :
Column 529
|1 April 1980|1 April 1992
-------------------------------------------------------
Royal Navy (including Royal Ma1:5.2) 1:6.1
Army |1:8.3 |1:7.4
Royal Air Force |1:5.1 |1:4.7
All Services |1:6.6 |1:5.9
Hercules Accident
Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the progress being made in the investigation of the accident to Hercules XV193 ; what is the expected date of completion of the accident investigation ; and what is the expected date of publication of the military aircraft accident summary.
Mr. Hanley : The board of inquiry has completed its investigation and the findings are now being considered. This process should be completed by late December. Publication of the military aircraft accident summary will follow shortly thereafter.
Shackleton Aircraft
Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Shackleton aircraft was first clear for carriage of nuclear weapons.
Mr. Hanley : The Shackleton maritime aircraft was first certified for carriage of American nuclear depth charges in the mid-1960s.
Bridging for the 90s"
Mr. Couchman : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the production order for the "Bridging for the 90s" equipment.
Mr. Aitken : I am pleased to announce that the "Bridging for the 90s" (BR90) production contract negotiations have concluded very satisfactorily. The production order was issued and accepted on 22 October 1993. The value of the order is approximately £140 million. The BR90 family of bridges is planned to enter service between January 1996 and June 1997 as follows :
January 1996
General Support Bridge
November 1996
Close Support Bridge
May 1997
Two Span Bridge
June 1997
Long Span Bridge
BR90 will be deployed with Royal Engineer units in both Germany and the United Kingdom.
This order will secure up to 250 jobs at the prime contractor, Thompson Defence Projects in Wolverhampton, as well as 50 jobs at Unipower in Watford and Tipton and many more at the other sub-contractors.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Sour Gas
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what research his Department has carried out into the (a) toxicity and (b) inflammability of sour gas ; and if he will make a statement.
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Farm Incomes
Mr. William Ross : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is his estimate of the (a) gross and (b) net farm income in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years.
Mr. Ancram : The two measures of agricultural income published by the Department of Agriculture are net of all material and service input costs. The broader measure is total income from farming which gives the sum available to reward farmers, their spouses and family workers for their labour and enterprise and to provide a return on their own capital invested. The second, narrower, measure is farming income which is the sum available to reward only farmers and their spouses for their labour and enterprise and to provide a return on their own capital invested. Figures for the period 1983-92 are as follows :
£ million (current prices)
|Total income from|Farming income
|farming
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1983 |130.3 |90.2
1984 |163.5 |122
1985 |125.4 |81
1986 |106.9 |61.1
1987 |161 |113.7
1988 |184.1 |136.3
1989 |212.8 |160.6
1990 |155.3 |103.3
1991 |180.3 |125
<1>1992 |224.2 |168.1
<1> Provisional.
Land Ownership
Rev. William McCrea : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the Government's estimate of the acreage of land in Northern Ireland owned by foreign companies and trusts based (a) in the Republic of Ireland and (b) elsewhere outside the United Kingdom.
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