§ Mr. WoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on British involvement in military strikes on targets in the Iraqi no-fly zones since952W 11 September 2001; what the cost of this involvement has been to Britain; and what (a) military and (b) civilian casualties have resulted. [93217]
§ Mr. IngramOur records do not separately identify expenditure incurred in maintaining the no-fly zones, nor can they be broken down from specific dates. However, the table sets out the overall estimated additional expenditure incurred as a direct result of operations in the Gulf during financial year 2001–02 and 2002–03.
£million 2001–02 221 2002–03 261 Denotes figure calculated on a resource basis.
I will write to the hon. Member with further details concerning expenditure in 2001–02 and 2002–03.
We are not aware of any civilian casualties resulting from responses made in self-defence by coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones since 11 September 2001. It is not possible to confirm whether military casualties have occurred.