Contributions
98 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDUK Strategy Towards the Arctic (International Relations and Defence Committee Report)My Lords, I welcome this opportunity to debate this excellent report regarding the UK’s strategy towards the Arctic. I share the view that this has been a somewhat neglected area…09 Jan 2025HANSARDDefence: 2.5% GDP Spending CommitmentMy Lords, arguably, one of the most difficult tasks of government is to determine the level of expenditure and therefore capability needed to reduce external threats to the…17 Dec 2024HANSARDNational Youth StrategyMy Lords, if the Government are so keen to expand the role of cadets in a national youth strategy, why have they just pulled the Department for Education’s funding for the cadet…10 Dec 2024HANSARDUkraineDo the Government accept that the principal determinant of the outcome of the war in Ukraine will now be the decisions and actions of the incoming US Administration? Are the…05 Dec 2024HANSARDG20 and COP 29 SummitsMy Lords, I heard what the noble Baroness said about the Chagos Islands and Diego Garcia. Surely the strategic issue to be squared within the treaty is not the security of the…25 Nov 2024HANSARDDefence Programmes DevelopmentsI draw Members’ attention to my relevant registered interest as a member of the Thales advisory board. I offer some sympathy to the Government regarding their defence inheritance,…25 Nov 2024HANSARDUkraine: North Korean TroopsThe effective control of escalation in this conflict appears to be vital. Can the Minister in any way reassure the House that we are a fundamental part of some international…23 Oct 2024HANSARDStrategic Defence ReviewMy Lords, when I spoke in the foreign policy and defence debate on the gracious Speech a few weeks ago, I welcomed the Government’s intention to hold a strategic defence review…09 Oct 2024HANSARDKing’s SpeechMy Lords, it might be judged somewhat risky for a general to follow the valedictory speech of a Bishop. Be reassured: right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Worcester is the cousin…25 Jul 2024HANSARDMinistry of Defence: ExpenditureDoes the Minister agree that, at this moment, the Government should remain open-minded on all areas of discretionary defence spending that do not directly contribute to keeping…25 Jul 2024HANSARDKing’s SpeechI turn to what I want to say in this debate. My time is now short, so I will concentrate on one aspect of the gracious Speech: the Government’s welcome intention to conduct a…25 Jul 2024HANSARDDefence FundingMy Lords, now that I have heard about the Minister’s initiative, I am less personally concerned about the scale and esoteric source of the defence uplift. Like many, my prime…16 May 2024HANSARDArtificial Intelligence in Weapon Systems Committee ReportMy Lords, it is a delight to follow the noble Lord, Lord Browne, whose companionship in the committee was but one of its many delights. I start by drawing attention to my relevant…19 Apr 2024HANSARDAUKUSMy Lords, when the Foreign Secretary answered Questions on AUKUS the week before last, he was euphoric, absolutely unbounded, in his enthusiasm for the agreement. I happily agreed…29 Feb 2024HANSARDAUKUS Security PartnershipSuperficially, this sounds like very good news and I welcome it, but were there no voices at the National Security Council that spoke to caution at all in respect of risk and…13 Feb 2024HANSARDHomelessness: VeteransMy Lords, I sometimes worry that Questions such as this convey a wider impression that military service somehow leads to long-term social disadvantage. That is just not the case.…31 Jan 2024HANSARDUkraineMy Lords, I offer my own welcome to the noble Lord, Lord Camoys, and congratulate him on an excellent maiden speech. If I may make so bold, his relative youth, which I welcome,…26 Jan 2024HANSARDPakistan: Afghans Eligible for Resettlement in UKTo be absolutely clear, has the eligibility of the two Afghan special forces units under ARAP now been substantiated in principle? If not, how will this Government sustain their…18 Dec 2023HANSARDKing’s SpeechI am pleased to have this opportunity to contribute to the debate on the gracious Speech. In doing so, the only interest I wish to declare is my national presidency of the Reserve…15 Nov 2023HANSARDArmed ForcesMy Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for securing this debate. It is very timely, as I worry that the capabilities of our Armed Forces are getting seriously out of balance…07 Sept 2023