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Ammunition

Answer

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes the security and accounting of its ammunition very seriously. The MOD therefore has in place mechanisms to ensure that only units and individuals which are allowed to draw and use specific types of ammunition can do so. In addition to this, the MOD operates a rigorous internal audit system to ensure that ammunition can be accounted for at all stages of the supply chain. This includes both formal inventory checking within ammunition stores and confirmatory checks at the end of a range session; the latter includes a declaration requiring individuals to confirm they have no ammunition in their possession. The Service Police Crime Bureau has recorded all reported losses, thefts, and recoveries of MOD ammunition since 2011. Centrally held figures prior to 2011 are not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The amount of lost and stolen ammunition is shown in the following table.

	2011	2012	2013	Total
Lost 9mm	13	164	60	237
Lost 5.56mm	247	602	1,473	2,322
Lost 7.62mm	0	0	210	210
Lost .22mm	0	0	55	55
Lost L35A3 105mm	0	0	1	1
Lost 12.7mm	0	29	0	29
Stolen 9mm	23	0	15	38
Stolen 5.56mm	90	1	280	371
Stolen 7.62mm	200	0	30	230

Full year data for 2014 is not yet available.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

207920

Session

2014-15

Subjects

Ammunition Armed forces Firing ranges

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.parliament.uk