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Conduct Of The Right Honourable Member For Henley When Secretary Of State For Defence

EDM number 194 in 1990-91, proposed by Alan Williams on 07/12/1990.

That this House notes with deep concern the National Audit Office report that ú350 million was lost in the two largest warehouse fires in British history, both at the Army's Central Ordnance Depot, Donnington, involving two very similar buildings; notes that after the first in June 1983 Ministers were told that `there was a real possibility of another equally disastrous fire' (para 2.9) and that 12 buildings were `very high' or `high' risk (para 2.14); notes that in December 1983 consultants warned that Donnington's building B1 was fundamentally unsuited to the storage of ú320 million of materials and `was amongst the worst fire risks they had ever seen and was likely on average to burn once every five years' (para 2.13); notes that comprehensive programme of measures drawn up in 1984 was not implemented and `when another high density store (building B1) was substantially destroyed at Donnington in 1988 the service had not completed any major structural fire protections measures' (Page 4), a failure resulting in a lost of ú180 million; notes (Page 1(c)) that `reports were made to Ministers up until February 1985'; notes newspaper allegations that this second fire leaves fighting forces facing shortages of tank spares; and asks the Secretary of State for Defence 1983-86 to explain why: (i) warnings were ignored, (ii) funds for fire protection were not available and (iii) Ministerial monitoring was discontinued.

This motion has been signed by a total of 34 MPs.

MPDateConstituencyPartyType
Alan Williams07/12/1990Swansea WestProposed
Terry Davis07/12/1990Birmingham, Hodge HillSigned
Paul Flynn07/12/1990Newport WestSigned
Ernie Ross10/12/1990Dundee WestSigned
Peter Hardy10/12/1990WentworthSigned
John McAllion10/12/1990Dundee EastSigned
Ian McCartney10/12/1990MakerfieldSigned
William McKelvey10/12/1990Kilmarnock & LoudounSigned
Martin Redmond11/12/1990Don ValleySigned
Bill Michie11/12/1990Sheffield, HeeleySigned
John Cummings11/12/1990EasingtonSigned
Harry Barnes11/12/1990North East DerbyshireSigned
Audrey Wise11/12/1990PrestonSigned
Gordon Oakes12/12/1990HaltonSigned
Jimmy Dunnachie12/12/1990Glasgow, PollokSigned
John Evans12/12/1990St Helens NorthSigned
Ron Davies13/12/1990CaerphillySigned
Doug Hoyle13/12/1990Warrington NorthSigned
Jack Thompson14/12/1990WansbeckSigned
Eric Illsley17/12/1990Barnsley CentralSigned
David Young18/12/1990Bolton South EastSigned
Stuart Bell18/12/1990MiddlesbroughSigned
John Battle18/12/1990Leeds WestSigned
Kenneth Eastham18/12/1990Manchester, BlackleySigned
Bob Cryer18/12/1990Bradford SouthSigned
James Callaghan18/12/1990Heywood & MiddletonSigned
Paul Murphy18/12/1990TorfaenSigned
Rhodri Morgan18/12/1990Cardiff WestSigned
Alun Michael18/12/1990Cardiff South & PenarthSigned
Alan Meale18/12/1990MansfieldSigned
John Home Robertson18/12/1990East LothianSigned
Norman Hogg18/12/1990Cumbernauld & KilsythSigned
Brian Sedgemore18/12/1990Hackney South & ShoreditchSigned
Max Madden18/12/1990Bradford WestSigned

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