HC Deb 05 May 2004 vol 420 cc1530-1W
Alan Simpson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British personnel are stationed in the United States as part of the 1958 US/UK Mutual Defence Agreement; and where they are located. [166578]

Mr. Ingram

Numbers of United Kingdom personnel stationed in the United States under the auspices of the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement vary in line with operational and other requirements. The current number is five, all am the Atomic Co-ordinating Office in the British embassy in Washington DC (this figure includes a Locally Employed Civilian).

Alan Simpson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel are employed in the renegotiation of the 1958 US/UK Mutual Defence Agreement; and what the estimated cost is of renegotiation. [166581]

Mr. Ingram

A number of Ministry of Defence personnel are involved in renegotiating the 1958 US/UK Mutual Defence Agreement as part of their normal duties, and FCO personnel will be involved in its ratification. The colt of the renegotiation is primarily the cost of this staff effort. Since this task represents only a small proportion of individuals' workloads, it is not possible to provide an accurate estimate of the collective cost of their time.

Alan Simpson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all the exchange of information and visit reports that have occurred in the last 12 months as part of the 1958 US/UK Mutual Defence Agreement. [166584]

Mr. Ingram

In the last 12 months, exchanges of information by visit and reports have occurred under the following subject headings: Radiochemistry; Safety and Security; Safety Assessment Methodology; Intelligence; Non-Proliferation arid Arms Control Technology; Enhanced Surveillance; Facilities and Infrastructure; Senior Visits; the Atomic Weapons Establishment Support Contract; and Miscellaneous.

Alan Simpson

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many people visited(a) the Pantex Plant in America, (b) the Sandia National Laboratories, (c) the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories, (d) the Los Alamos National Laboratories, (e) the Nevada test site and (f) the Rocky Flats plant on behalf of the United Kingdom Government in the last 12 months as part of the 1958 US/UK Mutual Defence Agreement. [166585]

Mr. Ingram

During the 12 months to 31 March 2004, there was a total of 190 visits by UK personnel to these sites under the 1958 US/UK Mutual Defence Agreement. The number of people visiting was as follows:

  1. (a) the Pantex Plant: 41
  2. (b) the Sandia National Laboratories: 205
  3. (c) the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories: 116
  4. (d) the Los Alamos National Laboratories: 219
  5. (e) the Nevada test site: 11
  6. (f) the Rocky Flats Plant: 0.

These figures include personnel making more than one visit, and visits to several sites during a single trip.

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