HC Deb 23 October 2001 vol 373 cc113-4W
Mr. Swayne

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements his Department has made to provide insurance for civilian contractors deployed on operations; and if he will make a statement. [9393]

Dr. Moonie

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) expects contractors to provide insurance appropriate to the conduct of their business. However, there are a limited number of risks that industry is unable to insure itself against, or where the cost of obtaining such insurance is prohibitive. In such cases the MOD would consider indemnifying industry for these specific and very limited circumstances. Hitherto, consideration of an indemnity for contractors and their personnel on deployed operations has been on a case-by-case basis, but the MOD is considering, with representatives of industry, standard arrangements for these activities.