§ Sir Teddy TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what are the manning levels for infantry battalions; and how many battalions are at full strength disregarding personnel posted away from their unit but included in the strength figures. [9201]
§ Dr. ReidThe strength of the Army's Infantry Battalions at 1 June 1997 is shown at Table 1. The figures include only those personnel serving with their parent units. There are at present eight Battalions either at or above full strength as shown at Table 2.
355W
Table 1: Infantry Strength Surplus deficit against establishment Household Division 1st Battalion, Grenadier Guards 433 -125 N Company, Grenadier Guards 98 -2 1st Battalion, Coldstream Guards 580 -48 7 Company, Coldstream Guards 113 +13 1st Battalion Scots Guards 440 -83 F Company, Scots Guards 84 -16 1st Battalion, Irish Guards 447 -76 1st Battalion, Welsh Guards 497 -25 Total 2,692 -362 Scottish Division 1st Battalion, Royal Scots 408 -174 1st Battalion, Royal Highland Fusiliers 519 -107 1st Battalion, King's Own Scottish Borderers 441 -79 1st Battalion, Black Watch 453 -70 1st Battalion, Highlanders 507 -76 1st Battalion, Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders 471 -87 Total 2,799 -593 Queens Division 1st Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment 413 -126 2nd Battalion, The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment 518 -37 1st Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers 504 -51 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers 607 -18 1st Battalion, The Royal Anglian 531 +12 2nd Battalion, The Royal Anglian 570 +9 Total 3,143 -211 Kings Division 1st Battalion, The King's Own Royal Border Regiment 533 -92 1st Battalion, The King's Regiment 543 +4 1st Battalion, The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment 537 +18
Table 1: Infantry Strength Surplus deficit against establishment 1st Battalion, The Green Howards 611 -14 1st Battalion, The Queen's Lancashire Regiment 489 -90 1st Battalion, The Duke of Wellington's Regiment 573 +54 Total 3,286 -120 Prince of Wales Division 1st Battalion, The Devonshire and Dorset Regiment 577 -48 1st Battalion, The Cheshire Regiment 486 -69 1st Battalion, The Royal Welch Fusiliers 507 -12 1st Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Wales 477 -45 1st Battalion, The Royal Gloucester Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment 523 -58 1st Battalion, The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment 634 +9 1st Battalion, Staffordshire Regiment 528 +9 Total 3,732 -214 Light Division 1st Battalion, The Light Infantry 466 -73 2nd Battalion, The Light Infantry 524 -31 1st Battalion, The Royal Green jackets 489 -90 2nd Battalion, The Royal Green Jackets 567 -58 Totals 2,046 -252 The Parachute Regiment 1st Battalion, The Parachute Regiment 506 -38 2nd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment 463 -81 3rd Battalion, The Parachute Regiment 437 -82 Total 1,406 -201 Royal Irish Regiment 1st Battalion, The Royal Irish Regiment 436 -145 Total 436 -145 The Brigade of Gurkhas 1st Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles 632 -11 2nd Battalion, The Royal Gurkha Rifles 749 +10 Total 1,381 -1 The figures shown above exclude the re-inforcement of 1st Battalion Royal Scots, 1st Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment and 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment by the Gurkha Re-inforcement Companies totalling 300.
Table 2
- 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian
- 2nd Battalion The Royal Anglian
- 1st Battalion The King's Regiment
- 1st Battalion The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment
- 1st Battalion The Duke of Wellington's Regiment
356 - 1st Battalion The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment
- 1st Battalion The Staffordshire Regiment
- 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles.