HC Deb 01 April 1993 vol 222 cc322-3W
Mr. Nigel Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements are made for the staff in his Department to carry out routine exercises to evaluate their guidelines for dealing with an accident involving the transportation of nuclear weapons; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Archie Hamilton

Regular exercises of varying scale are sponsored by the Ministry of Defence to enable departmental and other staffs to practise the response to a nuclear transport accident.

Mr. Nigel Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements have been made for contacting local authorities when nuclear weapons convoys travel through their area; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Archie Hamilton

Local civil police forces are always notified at least 24 hours in advance of nuclear weapon convoy movements through their area of responsibility. It is the accepted practice nationally that the civil police will co-ordinate the response of the other emergency services to all serious incidents and they would fulfil this same role in the event of an accident involving a nuclear weapon convoy.

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