§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence under what powers the Government have authorised the employment of members of Her Majesty's armed forces for fire fighting duties; and if he will make a statement. [81722]
§ Mr. Ingram[holding answer 19 November 2002]: The involvement of the armed forces followed a request from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister to assist with the provision of emergency fire and rescue cover in the event of a firemen's strike. A Defence Council Order for this purpose was signed under the Emergency Powers Act 1964.
The order permits troops to be used on non-military tasks which constitute urgent work of national importance, ensuring that instructions given to troops are lawful and subject to the provisions of the Service Discipline Acts.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to train defence personnel in the use of civilian fire equipment; and what estimates have been made of the time required to train personnel to an equivalent standard(a) to their current capacity to handle Green Goddesses, (b) to that of retained firefighters and (c) to that of full-time firefighters. [81958]
§ Mr. IngramIn view of the additional challenges presented by the eight-day strike threatened by the Fire Brigades Union to begin on 22 November, a number of red fire engines have been made available from the National Fire College and the Scottish training college.
These will be deployed in a role similar to that of the Green Goddesses, while exploiting the advantages they offer in this role. Two days conversion training for existing Green Goddess crews began on 18 November to enable their deployment, should it be necessary, on 22 November. It would take on average a minimum of 218W five weeks to train crews to the standard of retained firefighters and 12 weeks to that of full-time firefighters. Training times would, however, be dependent upon factors such as the numbers to be trained, the availability of personnel (instructors and trainees) and equipment and the time required to resource the training locations.
§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many(a) soldiers, (b) sailors and (c) airmen are (i) deployed on firefighting activities, (ii) trained to use civilian fire equipment and (iii) currently training to use civilian fire equipment. [82011]
§ Mr. IngramApproximately 2,700 Royal Navy personnel, 7,400 Army personnel and 2,200 Royal Air force personnel (some 12,300 personnel in total) are currently available for firefighting duties during Fire Brigade Union strike periods. In addition, 6,700 personnel are employed in support roles. Of the 12,300 personnel, 2,134 are trained in specialist roles to use civilian-type fire equipment (rescue equipment/cutting gear, chemical protection suits etc). They make up the flexible response Breathing Apparatus Rescue Teams and Regional Equipment Support Teams. The total is broken down by service as follows:
Total Army 1,533 Navy 236 RAF 365 As at 19 November, 240 personnel were undergoing conversion training from Green Goddesses to red fire appliances. Once trained, they will be able to operate the red fire appliances in a role similar to that of the Green Goddesses.