§ Mr. KeetchTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the instances since July 1998 where his Department or the armed forces have been required to offer specialist support to the civil authorities stating in each case the number of personnel involved and the duration of the mission; and if he will make a statement. [51261]
§ Mr. IngramThe armed forces provide military assistance to the civil authorities (MACA) on a daily basis. The assistance includes, for instance, search and422W rescue, and support to the police in the identification and disposal of explosive devices. The assistance provided to the Police Service of Northern Ireland also falls under the general heading of MACA. The total number of individual tasks undertaken since July 1998 runs into the thousands. Detailed records of many of these activities are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. There have, however, been a number of large-scale and high profile emergency tasks, details of which are in the table.
Regular forces Operation and duration Army RN1 RAF TA Fuel dispute 600 15 66 0 September 2000 Fuel 1,301 162 537 0 On standby November 2000 Floods 21,100 15 218 154 October-November 2000 Foot and Mouth3 1,907 178 91 4266 March-October 2001 Merseyside Fire Strike 151 191 191 0 July 2001 1 Including RM 2 About 3 This serial records the maximum number of regulars deployed on a single day during the foot and mouth crisis and the total number of TA soldiers deployed throughout the crisis. 4 It is possible that the figure may count some individuals involved more than once in support of MAFF/DEFRA, as two individuals.