Contributions
1,831 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDStrait of Hormuz: Merchant ShippingThe noble Lord makes an important point. That takes us to the other side of the situation, and the so-called Bab strait, which is a narrow strait on the other side—the western…20 Jul 2026HANSARDFuture Capability of the Armed ForcesI will feed that back to the department. All I am saying is that there is now a much more co-ordinated, effective diplomatic strategy that links the Foreign Office and the…16 Jul 2026HANSARDFuture Capability of the Armed ForcesMy Lords, it is a great privilege to respond to this debate. I thank everyone for taking part and I will try to respond to many of their points. I start by declaring an interest:…16 Jul 2026HANSARDFuture Capability of the Armed ForcesThat is a matter for discussion between all of us. The relationship with Ukraine remains crucial. How that is taken forward will have to be discussed. I thank my noble friend Lady…16 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyAs always, the points that my noble friend raises on these matters are incredibly important. He will know, from his vast experience and the work he does, that we must have…15 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyOne of the things we are doing was announced yesterday by my colleague from the other place in Faslane: £26 billion of investment over the next 10 years into naval bases across…15 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyWe have not rejected the core conclusions of that report. The noble Earl is absolutely right that we need investment, and the Government have announced huge amounts of it. I…15 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyI agree with the points that my noble friend makes. As I said in answer to the noble Earl, Lord Minto, that is what we are doing. We are steadily improving the drum beat that my…15 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyI agree with the point about the brilliance of our engineers and technicians and our ability to build ships. It would be great to see them supporting shipyards around the world…15 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyMy Lords, the Government are working hard to deliver for the UK shipbuilding sector. Since 2024, 1,000 jobs have been saved at Harland & Wolff’s yards in England, Scotland and…15 Jul 2026HANSARDNational Shipbuilding StrategyThe noble Lord will know as well as I do that if you went to Belfast a few years ago, as I did many times, you saw a derelict shipyard with nothing there. Now, you see investment…15 Jul 2026HANSARDDefence Readiness BillI certainly never resort to rhetoric, so the noble Baroness has my assurance on that. I thank my noble friend Lord Harris for introducing such an important debate, and everyone…09 Jul 2026HANSARDDefence Readiness BillI thank the noble Baroness for that comment. To answer the points from the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett, from the NATO resilience actions she can see many of the things that will…09 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThat the Bill be now read a second time. Scottish legislative consent granted, Northern Ireland and Welsh legislative consent sought .06 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillMy Lords. I start by highlighting the interests I have declared: my son-in-law is an active reservist. It is a great honour and pleasure to speak to the Armed Forces Bill, as I…06 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThe noble Lord explained some of that in his question. There is a particular situation, as he will know, with respect to Northern Ireland and the application of the covenant to…06 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillI thank the noble Baroness for winding up the debate and noble Members from across the House for their contributions. I am really pleased—as I think the Opposition Chief Whip…06 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThat the bill be committed to a Committee of the Whole House, and that it be an instruction to the Committee of the Whole House that they consider the bill in the following order:…06 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThat is always my intention—rather than to be just aspirational—to try to demand change of the system. The noble and gallant Lord will know from his experience and military…06 Jul 2026HANSARDArmed Forces BillThe noble Baroness will know from my record that the Government support the Armed Forces community in Northern Ireland completely. I went to Armed Forces Day in Northern Ireland…06 Jul 2026