§ Mr. Stratton Millsasked the Minister of State for Defence if he will seek to make arrangements so that the Territorial Army in Northern Ireland may assist in the guarding of key installations and in the manning of road blocks.
§ Mr. G. Johnson SmithIt is not intended to vary the present arrangements whereby the security duties undertaken by Northern Ireland units of the T.A.V.R. are limited to protecting their own premises as part of their normal milita[...] training.
§ Mr. Stratton Millsasked the Minister of State for Defence if he will detail the legislative and technical reasons why the Territorial Army cannot be used in Northern Ireland during the present emergency; and what would have to be done to permit it to be involved.
§ Mr. G. Johnson SmithI refer my hon. Friend to my speech in the debate on 25th November. Amending legislation to the Reserve Forces Act 1966, fundamentally altering the character of the T.A.V.R., would be necessary to allow its members to undertake security operations in Northern Ireland on a part time basis.—[Vol. 826, c. 1676.]
§ Mr. Stratton Millsasked the Minister of State for Defence how many members of the Territorial Army in Northern Ireland have applied for transfer to the Ulster Defence Regiment at the latest convenient date.
§ Mr. G. Johnson SmithI refer my hon. Friend to the reply given by the Minister132W of State for Defence to my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Mr. Buck) on 2nd February.—[Vol. 830, c. 146]