§ Mr. ShawTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what pay codes and definitions were used relating to working in a radiation environment at Chatham Dockyard; [39578]
(2) if he will make a statement on codes 37 (obnoxious condition) and 38 (extremely obnoxious conditions) as applied for industrial employees at Her Majesty's Naval Base, Chatham; [39580]
(3) what the definitions were for the permanent allowance codes (a) 12, (b) 13, (c) 15 and (d) 16 as applied for industrial employees at Her Majesty's Naval Base, Chatham. [39579]
§ Mr. SpellarThe pay and allowance codes referred to are no longer in use. It is not possible, without making further inquiries, to establish to which industrial allowances they related or to provide definitions.
The circumstances in which Obnoxious Conditions and Exceptionally Obnoxious Conditions Allowances were payable at Chatham Dockyard are also being investigated. Both allowances are currently payable generally to Ministry of Defence industrial staff where conditions include work in an enclosed environment, where the ambient temperature is above 32°C or below 0°C and the work is undertaken in a confined space.
I will write to my hon. Friend on both aspects when these inquiries are complete.