HC Deb 02 December 2002 vol 395 cc472-3W
Mr. Gray

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what stock of the army's combat assault boot is held; and how long that stock will last. [84102]

Dr. Moonie

As at 27 November, there are currently 18,745 pairs of Combat Assault Boots held in stock, which equates to about eight weeks supply. Our stocks are replenished at about 6,000 pairs a week.

Mr. James Gray

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers were issued with the combat assault boot in the last 12 months. [84103]

Dr. Moonie

For the period 1 November 2001 to 31 October 2002, 79,000 pairs of Combat Assault Boots were issued to Army units.

Mr. James Gray

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers could not be issued with the combat assault boot in the last 12 months because of shortage of supply. [84104]

Dr. Moonie

There have recently been problems with the supply of Combat Assault Boots (CAB) as a result of production difficulties with the contractors concerned. These difficulties have now been resolved and stocks are being replenished. We do not hold information centrally on the number of boots issued to individuals at unit level. We do not believe any soldier was without CAB because of this difficulty.