§ Mr. McCuskerasked the Secretary of State for Defence what is the total cost of the present scheme being carried out in improving the Army post at Middleton, County Armagh.
§ Mr. JohnA total of £35,000 has been spent on improvements to the Middletown Army post, of which £31,000 has been spent on the provision of a heavy goods vehicle search facility.
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§ Mr. McCuskerasked the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been spent on improving privately owned property requisitioned by the Army in Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. John£11,000. A further £71,000 has been spent on temporary buildings on three requisitioned sites.
§ Mr. Gowasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) whether he will list the circumstances in which compensation from public funds has been paid to members and ex-members of the Armed Forces and their dependants as a result of death or injury or illness sustained by members of the Armed Forces while serving in Ulster during the present emergency and the amount of compensation paid in each case;
(2) in what circumstances compensation is payable, under present regulations, to members of the Armed Forces serving in Ulster and their dependants where injury, illness or death occurs during the current emergency; and whether he is satisfied that those circumstances and the procedures for making claims for compensation are publicised adequately to all those who may be entitled to such compensation.
§ Mr. JohnMembers of the Armed Forces who are invalided from the Services as the result of an injury or illness which is due to service, and the widows and children of Service men whose death in service is attributable to their service, are eligible for pension and lump sum payments under the Forces Attributable Pension Scheme. They are also eligible for awards under the Department of Health and Social Security's War Pension Scheme.
Members of the Armed Forces who are injured and the dependants of those who are killed as the result of terrorist activity in Northern Ireland are eligible for compensation under the Criminal Injuries to Persons (Compensation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1968. It is not possible without disproportionate effort to provide the information asked for about the circumstances of individual cases and the amounts paid, but in the period up to 1st October 1974 there were 1,030 successful claims by Service men and their dependants under the Act and payments totalled just over £2 million.
359WI am satisfied that the procedure for making claims is well publicised and claimants are given every assistance through Service channels.