§ The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram)On 10 February 2003 I published the report of an appraisal of the care of recruits in initial training, carried out by an independent earn. Today I am publishing the report of a follow-up appraisal carried36WS out by the same team, which has continued to monitor progress, copies of which have been placed in the Library of the House.
The overall assessment arrived at by the re-appraisal is that the initial training system is proving highly successful in continuing to deliver a large number of high quality, motivated young people for service in the armed forces, most recently in the very demanding combat and environmental conditions of the Gulf. All three services' training organisations, however, are still very tautly resourced, notably in the area of supervisory and instructional manpower, for their very high throughput of trainees. The most significant risks are carried in the larger army training establishments. The team concludes that a good deal has been done, but that further progress will require additional investment of manpower and resources.
Alongside the re-appraisal report, I am publishing a Departmental progress report, which provides an overview of the action we have taken since February. A wide range of measures has been set in hand to improve processes and procedures, in line with the recommendations of the first appraisal report. These have included work to identify the resource implications of the recommendations. One of the most significant criticisms in February was of inadequate numbers of instructors, especially at some of the large army training establishments. The army has identified a requirement for additional instructors and support staff—106 of these vacancies were assessed as urgent; most have been filled already, and all will be filled by 11 August. This is a significant achievement on the army's part, at a time of major operational commitment overseas, and reflects the very high priority that the army puts on the initial training and care of its soldiers.
Inevitably, however, as the re-appraisal indicates, it takes time for all the policy changes that we are putting in place to be implemented, especially where extra resources or new infrastructure is required. As the reappraisal notes, the increased numbers of instructors and supervisory staff are still building up. They and other improvements we are putting in place, have the potential to significantly improve the training environment. But we are certainly not complacent and recognise that progress must be maintained and extended. In line with the latest recommendation of the team, we will carry out a further assessment of progress in summer 2004.