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Service Personnel

Volume 454: debated on Thursday 14 December 2006

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 30 November 2006, Official Report, column 812W, on service personnel (honours), what his Department’s policy is on the publication in national newspapers of the names of British servicemen and women who have been honoured for operational service by the United States Administration. (105114)

Awards bestowed on British Servicemen by the United States and other foreign governments are published in the London Gazette following receipt of The Sovereign’s permission to wear such awards. National newspapers may then re-publish these awards. As a matter of policy the Department does not pay for the insertion of the names of recipients of either British or foreign awards in the media other than in the London Gazette.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service people have been injured in operations in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan so as to require second-line medical attention since the commencement of those operations. (103001)

In answering this question I have taken ‘second-line medical attention’ to mean treatment in field hospitals in theatre.

The Ministry of Defence publishes data on battle and non-battle casualties that have resulted from our operations in Iraq from March 2003 and Afghanistan from 1 January 2006. The best centrally available casualty statistics can be found on the Ministry of Defence website

http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/FactSheets/OperationsFactsheets

Work is ongoing to ascertain whether casualty data for Afghanistan pre-2006 is sufficiently robust to enable figures to be published in the same format as for Iraq.

Iraq

The method of reporting for Iraq was changed at the end of 2005 so figures are quoted separately for before and after 1 January 2006:

Between March 2003 and 31 December 2005, 6,609 UK military and civilian personnel were treated at the Shaibah “Role 3” Field Hospital.

Between 1 January 2006 and 15 November 2006, 64 UK military or civilian personnel were admitted to the Shaibah Role 3 Facility in Iraq categorised as Wounded in Action, including as a result of hostile action. A further 1,089 UK military or civilian personnel were admitted to the Shaibah Role 3 Facility for Disease or Non-Battle Injuries.

Afghanistan

Between 1 January 2006 and 15 November 2006, 75 UK military or civilian personnel were admitted to UK or coalition medical facilities in Afghanistan categorised as Wounded in Action, including as a result of hostile action.

The method of reporting admittance to field hospitals in Afghanistan was changed at the end of October 2006, to bring it in line with reporting for Iraq. From 28 October 2006 figures for admittance for non-battle injuries also include disease whereas beforehand they only included non-battle injuries.

Between 1 January 2006 and 27 October 2006, 63 UK military and civilian Personnel were admitted to UK and Coalition medical facilities for non-battle injuries.

Between 28 October 2006 and 15 November 2006, 46 UK military and civilian Personnel were admitted to UK and Coalition medical facilities for disease or non-battle injuries.