§ Mr. Litterickasked the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the Army, the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force, respectively, have been sentenced to periods of imprisonment of 29 to 60 days under the summary powers granted to commanding officers by the Armed Forces Act 1977.
§ Mr. WellbelovedThe provision in the Armed Forces Act 1976 which increased the summary powers of commanding officers does not apply to the Royal Navy. Our records show that since this provision came into effect on 1st July 1977 a total of 37 Army and three RAF personnel have been sentenced to periods of detention of between 29 and 60 days.