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Armed Forces: Defence Equipment

Volume 463: debated on Monday 3 September 2007

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to ensure that 16 Air Assault Brigade is issued with the equipment which it needs (a) for training purposes and (b) to fulfil engagements; and if he will make a statement. (152924)

Our priority is to ensure that the armed forces are well-equipped for operations and operational commanders may request additional equipment through the chain of command at any time.

Outside operations, priority is given to equipping units for pre-Deployment Training. Other training and activities are given lower priority. In some cases the training requirement will exceed the number of items available at a given point in time. These shortfalls in equipment are addressed by the implementation of a range of measures, including the acceleration of the deep maintenance programme and the transfer of equipment between units, to ensure that the priority needs, such as pre-deployment training are met.