The UK has been working closely with our international partners, including NATO, to support the de-escalation of tensions between India and Pakistan. The UK has been deeply concerned about rising tensions and urgently calls for restraint on both sides to avoid further escalation. The UK is in regular contact with both countries urging for dialogue and diplomatic solutions to ensure regional stability.

The Ministry of Defence does not routinely assess the strength of al-Qaeda in Libya; al-Qaeda has suffered losses and is not the dominant security threat in Libya, although it has long maintained a presence in The South of Libya. The ongoing instability has provided greater freedom of movement, as a result, al-Qaeda has been able to plan and co-ordinate activity that aims to destabilise the local region.

The Ministry of Defence is absolutely committed to the mental health of all Service personnel. Maintaining good mental health, and providing treatment when required, is fundamental to maintaining a fit, healthy, and effective military force. Our operating model, as set out in the 2017 Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy, focuses on the four main strands of Promote, Prevent, Detect and Treat.

Recruits are entitled to the same primary and specialist mental healthcare as their trained counterparts, and initial training includes sessions on stress management, including how to recognise the early signs of a problem, and where to obtain help. A key issue is tackling the perceived stigma around mental health, and this is reinforced by training in programs such as Mental Health First Aid and Trauma Risk Management (TRiM).

For personnel who do need treatment, we can provide a wide range of psychiatric and psychological treatments. The backbone of this care is formed by our 11 military Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) across the UK, plus a network of six satellite mental health teams and a range of visiting clinics, all of which support the provision of healthcare that is available through Service primary care facilities.

Last year, the Secretary of State for Defence announced an additional £2million of annual funding for military mental health services, on top of the £20million a year already spent. Nationally, staffing in DCMHs has increased by 12 posts, and we are working with our in-patient hospital provider (Midlands Partnership Foundation Trust) to provide additional access to treatment through an outpatient psychotherapy service.

Daesh now holds just a few square kilometres in the Middle Euphrates River Valley. The Global Coalition assesses there are currently not enough Daesh fighters remaining in Iraq and Syria to make any further significant territorial gains. However, Daesh has dispersed into a cellular structure in order to maintain insurgency activity.

Daesh has also attempted to build a global network of affiliates, branches and sympathisers, the strength of which varies country to country. In many countries, Daesh's local network will continue to pose an enduring threat to regional stability. It will likely be limited to terrorist-type activity due to concerted counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency operations and competition with other militant groups.

As I announced in September 2018, the Ministry of Defence is developing a new Defence Arctic Strategy. As part of this work, an extensive assessment of current and future UK capacity in the Arctic is being undertaken, looking at both sovereign capability and capacity and the UK's contribution to NATO. The strategy is due to be published in the spring.

The Secretary of State speaks to his NATO counterparts regularly to discuss a range of defence and security policy issues. This particular issue is of deep concern to the UK. The UK, alongside other European NATO partners, met with Iranian authorities on 8 January 2019 to raise our deep concerns regarding hostile activities and plots being planned and perpetrated in Europe. The UK has released a statement condemning these actions. The UK nonetheless remains committed to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, for as long as Iran continues to implement it in full. However, we are clear that this commitment does not preclude us from addressing other hostile and destabilising activities.

The Ministry of Defence remains in close contact with our NATO partners regarding the NATO Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan. Our message has been clear that the UK continues to support a conditions-based approach where the development of a self-sufficient Afghan Security Force remains a key objective. The Secretary of State had an introductory call with the Acting US Defence Secretary on 8 January, where the current situation in Afghanistan was discussed. We welcome the US's continued efforts in promoting an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned peace process which is the only way to secure lasting peace.

Around 300 military personnel and two Royal Navy vessels are currently deployed on Maritime Security Operations that include Counter Narcotics, Anti-Piracy and Anti-People Smuggling.

Defence supports the UK Government and international efforts to tackle the threat from illicit drugs. Our main efforts are focused on seizure and disruption of illicit narcotics on the high seas. All Royal Navy ships conduct maritime security tasks while on operations and transiting between ports. This includes counter narcotics, counter piracy, and anti people smuggling and human trafficking.

The Royal Navy is involved in multinational counter-narcotic operations primarily in the Caribbean and Indian Ocean. The Royal Fleet Auxiliary also operates with US and other international partners to stem the flow of drugs from Latin America through the Caribbean, and across the Atlantic to UK and Europe.

At present RAF MOUNTS BAY is deployed to the Atlantic Patrol Task North and conducts counter narcotic operations as part of the deployment, generally outside the core hurricane period. In support of this task she routinely embarks a US Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment to assist.

The Royal Navy contributes to the Combined Maritime Force, headquartered in Bahrain, which promotes security, stability and prosperity across approximately 3.2 million square miles of international waters, encompassing some of the world's most important shipping lanes.

Last week HMS Dragon, a Royal Navy Type 45 Destroyer, interdicted 3,048kg of hashish from a dhow acting suspiciously in the Indian Ocean, along an area stretching from the Makran Coast to East Africa known as 'The Hash Highway.' HMS Dragon is part of the Royal Navy's commitment to the Combined Task Force 150 conducting operations in the wider Indian Ocean/North Arabian sea region.

Information on the intake of new recruits into the Regular Armed Forces since 31 March 2014, including a breakdown by Service, can be found at Excel Table 5A of the UK Armed Forces Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics, which can be found at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/quarterly-service-personnel-statistics-2018.

Intake information prior to 31 March 2014 can be found at Excel Table 5A of the UK Armed Forces Monthly Service Personnel Statistics, which can be found at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-armed-forces-monthly-service-personnel-statistics-2017

The Royal Navy, Army, and Royal Air Force support their respective museums through an annual Grant in Aid payment, which is used by the museums for any exhibition or theme that it wishes to support.

The net additional cost of counter-Daesh operations in Financial Year 2017-18 was £583.1 million. Additional costs in previous years are as follows:

The Government's assessment of Daesh has not changed significantly since my right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary's statement to the House on 11 July 2018 (Official Report, column 973). The Coalition continues to target Daesh in the final pocket of territory they hold in north east Syria, which is approximately 1% of the territory they once held across both Iraq and Syria. Loss of territory has reduced their access to resources but Daesh remain a significant threat, including to Iraq from over the border with Syria. Through Coalition efforts, Daesh has lost thousands of personnel, but significant numbers of Daesh fighters remain in Syria and Iraq as well as in the surrounding region.

Daesh's intent remains to strike the West and Western interests. There remains a significant threat to our interests from Daesh's affiliates. The Government therefore continues its counter-Daesh efforts. We will continue to keep the House updated on the progress of the counter-Daesh campaign.

The information requested can be found at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/quarterly-service-personnel-statistics-2018

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave earlier today to the hon. Members for Glasgow North East (Paul Sweeney) and Manchester, Withington (Jeff Smith) to Questions 901305 and 901310.

There has been some excellent work across Defence in the area of diversity and inclusion. However, progress in terms of the representative rates of our people - both military and civilian - has been too slow. Although it is improving, it is clear that there is still much more that we need to do if we are to successfully attract and retain diverse talent both now and in the future.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is working towards a target of 15% female recruitment to the Armed Forces by 2020. The Department is also working towards a target of 10% of recruits to come from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds by 2020.

These are challenging targets, however they will help make the Armed Forces more diverse and reflect the society they serve. Work to meet these targets includes better understanding and greater engagement with the communities we want to recruit from; reviewing recruitment processes and better targeting our marketing and communications.

As at 1 October 2016 recruitment of female military personnel was 11.5% of total intake and recruitment of BAME military personnel was 5.8% of total intake. Full details of the MOD's performance against the 2020 diversity intake targets, including historic trends from September 2013, can be found in our publication 'UK Armed Forces Biannual Diversity Statistics' the latest edition of which (October 2016) is available at the following address:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-armed-forces-biannual-diversity-statistics-2016

The Government publishes statistics on the operation of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 within central Government, including details on numbers of requests received. These can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-foi-statistics.

For ease of reference, a summary is provided in the below:

All staff within the Ministry of Defence are responsible for ensuring that the Department as a whole is able to meet its legislative obligations under the FOI Act, and many can be involved in processing FOI requests. The costs in terms of staff time spent on this activity are not recorded and so the total cost cannot be calculated.

As previously reported, the Defence Medical Services' average annual staff costs for military, reserves and civilian mental health personnel across the last three years was £20.39 million. Our current intention is to maintain the numbers of mental health specialists at broadly the same level over the next five years.

A recent study (the Defence Mental Health Services Review) recommended the civilianisation of 40 military posts. Overall, there will be a net increase of two posts and minor changes to the mix of specialisms. It is anticipated that this will result in a minor decrease in overall annual staff costs. This cannot yet be quantified as the detailed timing of implementation is yet to be determined.

The average costs for military, reserves and civilian personnel for each of the last three years, the period for which figures are available, are provided in the table below.

Where gaps exist in military or civilian mental health services delivery staff, locums may be used, the costs of which are also provided.