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Written question asked by Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat) on Thursday, 4 December 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 9 December 2008. It was answered by Bob Ainsworth (Labour) on Tuesday, 9 December 2008 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.


Armed Forces: Deployment

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces will be on active duty abroad on 25 December 2008, broken down by location.
Answer

The endorsed force level for UK military operations are set out in the table. While we do not routinely comment on future troop deployments, we have no reason to believe these figures will change significantly by 25 December 2008.

Location Endorsed number (at 5 December 2008)¹
Afghanistan 8,050
Southern Iraq 4,100
Baghdad² 250
At sea 1,050
Falklands/South Atlantic 1,500
Qatar 700
Cyprus 300
Kuwait 550
Kosovo 150
Bahrain 50
Bosnia Less than 50
Other³ 150
¹ Rounded.
² Providing support to the Senior British Military Representative—Iraq.
³ Small scale deployments in support of EU and UN missions, and headquarters liaison officers.

The precise number of personnel in each theatre at any one time fluctuates on a daily basis for a variety of reasons, including mid-tour rest and recuperation, temporary absence for training, evacuation for medical reasons, the roulement of forces, visits and other factors.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
485 c49-50W; 241982
Session
2008-09
Subjects
Armed forces Deployment
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk