Written question asked by Kevin McNamara (Labour) on Monday, 14 February 2000, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 21 February 2000. It was answered by Lord Spellar (Labour) on Monday, 21 February 2000 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many soldiers have been disciplined for offences alleged to be connected with the activities of (a) Combat 18 and (b) other extremist organisations over the past three years; and what actions he is taking to prevent infiltration by such organisations. - Includes figure.

Answer: Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers have been disciplined for offences alleged to be connected with the activities of (a) Combat 18 and (b) other extremist organisations over the past three years; and what actions he is taking to prevent infiltration by such organisations. [110664] Mr. Spellar: It has long been the policy of the Armed Forces that Service life precludes membership of, support for, or association with groups or organisations whose purpose includes incitement to racial hatred and violence. All three Services have in place regulations and instructions which give clear guidance to the Chain of Command on the process governing administrative discharge which is available to deal with behaviour which is incompatible with military service. Over the past three years two soldiers alleged to have been involved with Combat 18 have been discharged from the Army. Recruiting and vetting processes aim to provide a high degree of protection against infiltration by extremist organisations.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 344 c737W; 110664
Session: 1999-00
Subjects: Disciplinary proceedings Armed forces Discharges Racial discrimination Fascism Combat 18
Contains statistics: Yes