To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans there are to implement the Afghan Public Protection Programme in Helmand province. (304369)

I have been asked to reply.

We are fully aware of the Afghan Public Protection Force project being piloted in Wardak province with the help of the US. We welcome the principle of empowering individual communities to take a greater role in providing their own security. We will remain in close contact with the Afghan Government and the US on its progress and look forward to discussing the results of this pilot with them in due course. Only once the pilot has been rigorously evaluated will any decisions on expansion, including to Helmand, be taken.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the proportion of armed forces personnel who deploy to Helmand province equipped with a cricket box for groin protection; and if he will make a statement. (304726)

All of the protective personal equipment provided to armed forces personnel is constantly under review. The Osprey body armour systems have long been considered to be among the best in the world, and the survival rates are testimony to that; however, a direct by-product of that is that personnel are now surviving with other associated and sometimes life-changing injuries. We are continually seeking ways to further protect our personnel, and work is well under way to research ways of providing additional protection including for the whole groin area.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how much his Department paid for Jet A1 and diesel fuel delivered to Camp Bastion in support of UK operations in the last 12 month period for which figures are available; (304745)

[holding answer 7 December 2009]: Fuel for both Bastion and Kandahar Airbase is paid for from the same budget. During the last 12 calendar months £85,669,000 was paid for aviation fuel; and £43,058,000 for ground fuel for both locations. Based upon information from FY 2008-09 onwards the average monthly cost of aviation fuel was £6,070,000; and £2,891,000 for ground fuel for both Bastion and Kandahar Airbase. The information for fuel costs prior to FY 2008-09 is not held centrally.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps the Department is taking to enable mail and postal services provided for armed forces personnel in Afghanistan to manage the volume of letters and parcels expected over the Christmas period. (305343)

Over the Christmas period, the British Forces Post Office (BFPO) employs extra staff to ensure that all HM Forces mail to all world-wide destinations including Afghanistan is dispatched promptly.

The Enduring Free Mail Service which operates all year round is bolstered by the Christmas Free Mail Service (CFMS) for one month before Christmas, where the Free Post is extended to cover not only Operations and their supporting ships, but all destinations where HM Forces are deployed.

The CFMS is advertised along with Last Dates of Posting via a Defence Information Notice and the BFPO and MOD websites. This information is also available on the Royal Mail website.

MOD undertook press and media campaigns in the run up to Christmas to promote the reduction in volume of Unsolicited Mail, which places a considerable burden on the Supply Chain, which, left unchecked, can seriously delay personal mail.

Finally, over the Christmas period, Royal Mail occasionally delivers directly to BFPO to shorten transport time, rather than BFPO staff collecting mail from the Royal Mail Depot at Greenford.