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Military Aid

Question for Ministry of Defence

UIN HL1619, tabled on 14 September 2017

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have completed a review into the allocation of costs of using Ministry of Defence assets for emergency relief in cases of (1) natural disasters, and (2) the rescue of migrants at sea, to the budget of the Department for International Development.

Answered on

25 September 2017

The appropriate allocation of operational costs is considered at the commencement of an operation and, where appropriate, reviewed annually. For most operations the Ministry of Defence (MOD) seeks funds for costs that are over and above existing funding arrangements. Where the Department for International Development (DfID) has requested the use of MOD assets to support humanitarian and disaster relief operations the additional costs may be recovered from DfID. The additional cost of the counter-people trafficking operation in the Mediterranean is met from the HM Treasury Special Reserve.