WESTMINSTER RADAR
Search
My MPs
Menu

Question follow-through · 115408

Nuclear Weapons: Testing

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the recent declassification of the Merlin database and file reference ES 38/ZGWGV, whether service personnel took part in a mission to sample the Soviet nuclear weapon known as Tsar Bomba.

answeredMinistry of Defence

About this written question

A written question asks a government minister for information in writing. Parliament publishes the question and any answer.

Answering body
Ministry of Defence
Tabled
24 Feb 2026
Target answer date
3 Mar 2026
Answer
3 Mar 2026 · 7 calendar days after tabling

Elapsed calendar days describe the record timeline, not whether Parliament considers an answer on time.

More questions by this MP on Defence and foreign affairs

Shared topic keywords suggest a connection; they do not establish a follow-up.

Votes on this topic

These Commons divisions share a topic label. The question did not necessarily lead to a vote.

Recorded timeline

  1. 24 Feb 2026

    Question tabled

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the recent declassification of the Merlin database and file reference ES 38/ZGWGV, whether service personnel took part in a mission to sample the Soviet nuclear weapon known as Tsar Bomba.

  2. 3 Mar 2026

    Target answer date

    Date supplied by the official written-questions record.

  3. 3 Mar 2026

    Answer published

    The information in ES38/ZGWGV suggests that Service personnel were involved in at least one sampling sortie after the Tsar Bomba test in October 1961. However, the unit records from this time are now held by The National Archives, and it is not possible t...

Open official record

Official data retrieved 28 Sept 2026.

Later records

Possible follow-up questions

Strong links require the same MP, department and exact heading. Other same-department questions are shown as unreviewed candidates, not as confirmed follow-ups. No debate link is asserted unless a stable source relationship exists.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Army: Recruitment

13 May 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether under-18-year-old recruits in Army initial training are subject to staged exit restrictions when seeking to leave service.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Army: Recruitment

13 May 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many under-18-year-old recruits in Army initial training have (a) requested to leave service, (b) been required to observe a cooling-off period, (c) had their discharge delayed beyond 14 days, and (d) been re

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Army: Recruitment

13 May 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information is provided to under-18-year-old recruits in Army training regarding their right to leave service, and at what point in training this information is communicated.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Army: Recruitment

13 May 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether provisions allow the immediate discharge of an under-18 year old recruit from Army training on safeguarding or welfare grounds, including where there are allegations of abuse; and whether such discharge c

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Armed Forces: Smoking

3 Jun 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what comparative assessment his Department has made of smoking prevalence among armed forces personnel.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Armed Forces: Electronic Cigarettes

3 Jun 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance his Department has issued on the use of (a) non-compliant and (b) illicit vaping products on defence premises and naval vessels.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Armed Forces: Electronic Cigarettes and Smoking

3 Jun 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's policy is on (a) vaping cessation support and (b) smoking cessation support for armed forces personnel.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Veterans: Radiation Exposure

4 Sept 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department has made towards publishing records about Nuclear Test Veterans from The Technical Cooperation Programme.

Unreviewed candidateSame MP and department; topic relationship is unreviewed

Defence: Technology

14 Sept 2026 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the Memorandum of Understanding of the Technological Cooperation Programme.