§ Angus RobertsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many(a) full-time reservists with full commitment contracts, (b) full-time reservists with limited commitment contracts, (c) full-time reservists with home commitment contracts and (d) volunteer reservists have been called out on active duty in each year since 1997; and what the average active duty service time has been for each category. [148669]
§ Mr. CaplinThe Full Time Reserve Service (FTRS) commitment was established in 1998.
The numbers of FTRS personnel called out for permanent service by the Royal Navy (including Royal Marines) and Royal Air Force since 1998 are detailed in the following table. The Army does not keep a separate record of FTRS personnel called out for permanent service.
FTRS full commitment
FTRS limited commitment
FTRS home commitment
1998 0 0 0 1999 0 0 0 2000 0 0 0 2001 2 2 0 2002 3 2 0 2003 18 56 0 These figures do not include those personnel who, as part of their FTRS commitment, served on operations.
We have been unable to distinguish between the forms of service that reservists were undertaking when mobilised. Therefore, the figures detailed as follows cover all reservists mobilised.
1250W
Number of reservists mobilised 1997 980 1998 840 1999 1,400 2000 1,120 2001 920 2002 1,720 2003 9,550 A central record of the average period of mobilised service that each category has served since 1997 is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, in 2003 for Operation TELIC reservists would have been mobilised for between seven and nine months (this includes pre-deployment training and post-deployment leave).