§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will give, at the latest and most 369W convenient date, the numbers of bandsmen of all ranks in the Army. Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force and their total costs; and whether all of these undertake regular military training.
§ Mr. GoodhartThe total numbers of bandsmen as at 1 April 1981 were as follows:
Bandsmen Royal Marines 641 Army 2,820 Royal Air Force 307 The total annual cost is approximately £32.4 million—Royal Marines £6.5 million, Army £23.6 million and Royal Air Force £2.3 million.
Bandsmen are trained for essential wartime roles such as guarding key points and acting as stretcher bearers and drivers. They undertake basic training for these roles on entry and undertake continuation training at regular intervals thereafter.