§ Mr. Pattieasked the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when the bounty levels for the volunteer reserves were last reviewed;
(2) if he will now take steps to harmonise the present system of liability bounties as between reserve forces;
(3) when he proposes to review the bounty levels for the volunteer reserves.
§ Mr. Robert C. BrownThe level of bounties paid to volunteer members of the reserve forces was last reviewed in 1975. The increases in the training bounties which resulted from that review took account of the fact that the liability bounty had remained unchanged since 1967. I recognise, however, the desirability of further increasing the level of training bounties and at the same time harmonising the present arrangements for the payment of liability bounties, but the case for increased expenditure in this direction must be considered in relation to the constraints of Government pay policy and to competing demands on the defence budget. The level of bounties remains under review in the light of these and other relevant factors.