HC Deb 02 December 2002 vol 395 cc477-8W
Mr. Jenkin

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in the event of competing demands on UK forces from ESDP and NATO, to which organisation will he give priority. [84876]

Mr. Hoon

The Government make decisions on the deployment of United Kingdom forces on operations on a case-by-case basis. These judgments are based on factors such as operational need, what forces we and others have to offer, and any international treaty obligations that may be relevant, with NATO remaining the foundation of our collective defence.

Mr. Jenkin

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if it is the policy of the Government that EU-NATO relations should be established so that all force planning and military command functions should be through NATO military headquarters at SHAPE. [84878]

Mr. Hoon

The Nice European Council in December 2000 decided that, for EU-led operations that make use of NATO assets and capabilities, operational planning will be carried out by NATO's planning bodies. For these operations, the Deputy SACEUR and SHAPE have been identified as the primary candidates for Operation Commander and Operation Headquarters. These arrangements are subject to finalising agreement on modalities for EU-NATO co-operation. For EU-led operations without recourse to NATO assets and capabilities, planning and command requirements would draw on existing national and multinational headquarters available to the EU.

Mr. Jenkin

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place a copy of the Helsinki Headline Catalogue 2002 (HHC 2002) in the Library. [84873]

Mr. Hoon

This is a European Union document and thus not ours to publish. I am withholding it under Exemptions la and c (Defence, Security and international relations) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.

However, a summary of potential member state contributions to an EU-led operation was placed in the Library of the House in May of this year.