Written question asked by Christopher Chope (Conservative) on Thursday, 12 November 1998, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 18 November 1998. It was answered by Lord Spellar (Labour) on Wednesday, 18 November 1998 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the conclusions of Taskforce 2000 published on 11th November in respect of his Department's most recent quarterly return on plans and progress towards Year 2000 readiness.

Answer: Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the conclusions of Taskforce 2000 published on 11 November in respect of his Department's most recent quarterly return on plans and progress towards Year 2000 readiness. [60219] Mr. Spellar: Taskforce 2000 have correctly recognised the scale of the problem facing the Ministry of Defence and the capability of our programme managers. To counter the millennium problem we have put in place a comprehensive assessment and rectification programme, including external audit of our processes, and considerable progress has been made. We are monitoring expenditure closely and believe that our cost estimate for the programme remains realistic. The principal objective of our programme is to identify and manage any risks to Defence capability arising from the millennium problem. The results of the next quarterly review will be announced shortly and copies of the department's latest quarterly return will be placed in the Libraries of the House and published on the internet.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 60219; 319 c637-8W
Session: 1997-98
Subjects: Computers Government departments Millennium compliance Ministry of Defence Taskforce 2000