HC Deb 05 March 1996 vol 273 cc136-7
4. Mr. Win Griffiths

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the future provision of engineering services to the RAF from RAF St. Athan. [16840]

The Minister of State for Defence Procurement (Mr. James Arbuthnot)

RAF St. Athan provides a high quality and responsive service to the Royal Air Force. The current "Competing for Quality" programme is designed to ensure that that will continue.

Mr. Griffiths

I thank the Minister for that reply and I am well aware of the excellent service provided by RAF St. Athan on the borders of my constituency. There are concerns about the way in which the service is being stretched. Will the Minister assure me that the service at RAF St. Athan will be maintained at least at its current level—and possibly increased given the need to carry out even more regular checks on our Tornado and other aircraft in the light of the spate of serious crashes earlier this year?

Mr. Arbuthnot

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for asking that question and for the way in which he put it. I had the great good fortune to visit RAF St. Athan on 22 February and I found there an extremely loyal, hard-working and highly trained work force who give the Royal Air Force everything that it needs in terms of quality and commitment. I was extremely impressed by what they do. We very much regret the recent spate of accidents, particularly those involving loss of life, and we extend our sympathy to the families involved. We have started investigations into all the accidents and it is becoming plain that there is no common thread to them. They involve different types of errors, different types of aircraft and different services—some involve the Royal Air Force and some the Royal Navy. However, we are not complacent and are examining all the accidents with great care.

Mr. Wilkinson

Does my hon. Friend agree that it is vital to maintain within the Royal Air Force maintenance units such as St. Athan for third-line servicing because "Competing for Quality" necessitates a benchmark to compete against for the quality of service and standards of servicing required? There will be occasions when industry will not necessarily have the appropriate expertise.

Mr. Arbuthnot

My hon. Friend is right: the "Competing for Quality" programme involves improvements in quality and a great increase in value for money. We have saved much money for the front line. The Royal Air Force will continue to manage RAF St. Athan. We know that the in-house bid team at RAF St. Athan is highly dedicated and, because of its skills, it is confident that it will be able to win the tender.

Mr. Foulkes

Does the Minister agree that it is vital that the maintenance at RAF St. Athan is top class, particularly for the aircraft that carry out low flying over my constituency and other parts of the south of Scotland? When will those Members, including the right hon. Members for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale (Sir D. Steel) and for Dumfries (Sir H. Monro), who went to see the Under-Secretary of State for Defence, receive a report on the reduction in low flying in the borders tactical training area?

Mr. Arbuthnot

I cannot answer that question, but I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on his ingenuity in bringing the subject of low flying into a question about St. Athan. I shall pass on what he says to my noble Friend the Under-Secretary.