§ Mr. PatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect the introduction of(a) increased telephone time, (b) the increase in leave it the end of operational tours and (c) introduction of e-mail will have on reducing the time the Government will take to achieve its recruitment targets set out in the Strategic Defence Review. [125564]
§ Mr. Spellar[holding answer 12 June 2000]The doubling of telephone call time to 20 minutes, the introduction of post operational tour leave, and the ongoing introduction of e-mail facilities were measures aimed at alleviating pressure on families, and were primarily designed to assist retention. All the measures have proved highly popular since their introduction and it is hoped that they will also have a beneficial, although indirect, effect on recruiting.