HC Deb 08 September 2003 vol 410 cc43-7W
Mr. Dalyell

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers have been airlifted out of Iraq suffering from heat exhaustion. [128433]

Mr. Caplin

Since the start of military operations in Iraq, around 160 soldiers have been evacuated from Iraq suffering from heat-related illness.

Mr. Ben Chapman

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on measures to secure Iraq's borders. [128421]

Mr. Hoon

I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to the right hon. Member for Bracknell (Mr. Mackay), 8 September 2003,Official Report, columns 3–4.

Harry Cohen

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the dates and circumstances of civilian deaths in(a) Basra and (b) Umm Qasr since 20 March which have involved British military personnel. [121537]

Mr. Ingram

We make every effort to minimise the impact of military operations on the Iraqi civilian population. We do not, and could not, record the numbers of Iraqi military personnel or civilians that have been killed or injured during the coalition's military action.

Mr. Win Griffiths

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many(a) armed Services personnel, (b) other non-Iraqi personnel and (c) Iraqi personnel are involved in maintaining peace and law and order in Iraq; in which areas these personnel operate; and if he will list (i) violent incidents in which they have been involved, (ii) fatalities and (iii) casualties since 23 April 2003. [122473]

Mr. Ingram

[holding answer 3 July 2003]There are some 160 United Kingdom Royal Military Police and Military Police operating in Iraq at present, assisting in maintaining law and order in southern Iraq. The Coalition Provisional Authority reports that there are some 31,000 Iraqi police now at work across Iraq. We do not centrally record the number of violent incidents in Iraq. But 17 UK Service personnel have died since 23 April 2003.

Mr. Wray

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Royal Military Policemen are deployed in Iraq; what their role is; and if he will make a statement on what protection is afforded to them whilst carrying out their tasks. [123838]

Mr. Ingram

As of 28 August 2003, there were approximately 180 Royal Military Police (RMP) in theatre serving on Operation Telic. Their duties include Force Protection, liaison with host nations, Prisoner-of-War handling, Close Protection and general police duties at military establishments. The Special Investigations Branch, which investigates incidents and allegations involving members of the UK armed forces, is also part of the RMP. Members of the RMP are afforded force protection measures appropriate to the duties they are carrying out.

Llew Smith

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the intelligence sources to which reference is made in the section on intelligence, at page 15 of his Department's recent report on first reflections on operations in Iraq, include the intelligence sources drawn upon in the preparation of the dossiers on Iraq's military capabilities published in(a) September 2002 and (b) February 2003 by the Government. [126922]

Mr. Ingram

The intelligence sources referred to in the Ministry of Defence's Iraq First Reflections Report are all the intelligence sources available to support the planning and conduct of the military operation including defence intelligence, intelligence from national agencies and intelligence from allies. However, the report's focus is on the intelligence on Iraqi military intentions in the period immediately before and during the conflict. The Government's Assessment of Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction described the role of intelligence in Part 1, Chapter 1 which lists the principal sources as the United Kingdom's intelligence and analysis agencies and intelligence from close allies.

Mr. Bailey

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans there are for the installation of air conditioning at Ministry of Defence troop bases in Iraq. [127128]

Mr. Ingram

At present, approximately half of all United Kingdom Service personnel deployed in Iraq have access to air-conditioned accommodation. Work is continuing to provide further air conditioning in accommodation areas throughout the area of operations. The majority of personnel should be provided with air-conditioned accommodation by the end of September 2003.

Lynne Jones

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the Government's reply to the 56th Report from the Public Accounts Committee, Session 2001–2, what measures were taken, prior to the war in Iraq, to(a) invest in equipment, (b) raise awareness throughout the land forces and (c) refine tactics, techniques and procedures to improve Combat Identification in the land environment. [127307]

Mr. Hoon

Combat Identification is fundamental to combat effectiveness and enables us to minimise the risk of fratricide. We therefore have a continuing programme to support our armed forces' Combat Identification capability through investment in equipment, training and continuous review of tactics, techniques and procedures. Prior to war-fighting operations in Iraq we worked to ensure, as we do before any military operation, that robust Combat Identification arrangements were in place and that the best Combat Identification equipment available for this operation was provided.

We worked very closely with the United States in the planning phase on a coalition concept of operations for Combat Identification. This related principally to specific marking systems for ground forces. We acquired a range of new equipment to ensure that UK land forces capabilities either complied with or exceeded the mandated standard. We also acquired sufficient sets of the US's recently developed satellite-based Blue Force Tracking tool to help our units operate with US forces. GPS navigation aids and the short-range Personal Role Radio, a part of the Bowman programme brought into service early, were widely available.

UK and US forces also set up liaison arrangements to maintain dialogue on tactics, techniques and procedures for the operation and took steps to familiarise themselves with each other's forces.

Mr. Amess

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civil servants are in Iraq searching for weapons of mass destruction; and when they were sent. [128309]

Mr. Ingram

On 1 September 2003 there were 19 civil servants in Iraq working for the Iraq Survey Group employed in its task of searching for Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. They arrived in theatre from 13 June 2003. This number will continue to change as new staff join and others complete their periods of duty.

Glenda Jackson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proportion of British forces in Iraq are engaged in making safe unexploded ordnance; how many devices have been disarmed; and what other agencies are assisting in this work. [114516]

Mr. Ingram

[holding answer 19 May 2003]The United Kingdom currently has 10 Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams in Iraq consisting of 99 personnel.

As at 4 September some 116,000 individual items of unexploded ordnance had been cleared. We estimate that over 220,000 rounds of small arms ammunition have also been cleared. The vast majority of unexploded ordnance is of Iraqi origin.

A number of Non-Governmental Organisations have been conducting EOD clearance under the supervision of the United Nations Mine Action Coordination Team, including Minetech and Intersos.

Hugh Robertson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what British resources have been devoted to investigating deaths by friendly fire during the Iraq conflict, broken down by number of people investigating and their Service. [115792]

Mr. Ingram

[holding answer 3 June 2003]All incidents where friendly fire is suspected are investigated fully. In the case of incidents arising from Operation Telic, most are being investigated by personnel from the Royal Military Police Special Investigations Branch. Eight personnel are currently employed on these tasks. Where appropriate, the incidents will also be the subject of individual Service Boards of Inquiry.

Mr. Gardiner

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what action he is taking to protect recently discovered mass graves in Iraq. [117059]

Mr. Caplin

The United Kingdom Government continue to believe that those who have been responsible for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Iraq should be brought to justice. Where it is suspected that a mass grave site has been found, details of the site are passed to Coalition Joint Task Force 7 (CJTF7) Crime Investigation Division. Where possible, UK Forces will provide protection to such sites, but this requirement has to be balanced against other demands for their services.