§ Dr. Julian LewisTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what(a) briefing and (b) other assistance personnel from his Department gave to The Sunday Telegraph in respect of its report of 22 December 2002 about preparations for a military campaign against Iraq. [89883]
§ Dr. Julian LewisTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what guidelines he has given to the media about what is not appropriate to report in advance of possible military action against Iraq. [89884]
§ Mr. HoonNo guidelines have been issued to anyone detailing what would not be appropriate to report should there be any military action against Iraq. However, the specific issue of reporting restrictions is dealt with under the DA Notice procedures, further details of which can be found on the Defence Press and Broadcasting Advisory Committee website at:
The Ministry of Defence will shortly be in touch with editors of the mainstream media about the arrangements for reporting during any possible future military action against Iraq.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many children have been killed in Iraq as a direct result of bombs and missiles used to enforce the no-fly zones in Iraq since the policy of implementation was started. [90234]
§ Mr. HoonWe are not aware of any child fatalities resulting from responses made in self-defence by coalition aircraft patrolling the no-fly zones.
Coalition aircrew only ever respond in self defence against military targets. When attacks by Iraqi air defences force coalition aircraft to respond in this way, 704W we go to great lengths to ensure that the risk of civilian casualties is minimised. Targets are selected with extreme care and precision-guided weapons are used.
§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what has been the cost to date of mobilisation of British troops and medical auxiliaries for prospective military activities in the Gulf. [90239]
§ Mr. HoonThe information requested is not yet available. I will write to my hon. Friend and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House in due course.
§ Paul FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what role he expects the Fairford air base in Gloucester to play in any conflict with Iraq. [90255]
§ Mr. HoonRAF Fairford is a NATO designated standby base that is made available to the United States Visiting Force and from which a wide range of aircraft types can be deployed. The United Kingdom Government must be fully consulted and agree before any US Air Force aircraft are deployed operationally from any RAF base, including RAF Fairford.
No request has been received to activate RAF Fairford for operational purposes and it would be inappropriate to speculate what role, if any, the base might play in the event of any conflict with Iraq.
§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many MOD personnel are engaged in(a) translating and (b) analysing the dossier submitted by Iraq to the UN; and if he will make a statement. [88959]
§ Mr. HoonThe Iraqi declaration in response to United Nations Security Council resolution 1441 is being analysed by the Ministry of Defence in conjunction with other Departments. Parts of the declaration are being translated into English by Ministry of Defence personnel and by personnel drawn from other Departments. I am withholding the number of personnel engaged in the tasks of translating and analysing the declaration in accordance with Exemption la of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.