Contributions
1,451 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDUkraine: Military Response to Russian InvasionWe work closely with international partners and Ukraine to ensure that Ukraine receives the right equipment at the right time. Meetings such as those of the Ukraine defence…07 Nov 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsFirst, let me pay tribute to my right hon. Friend the Member for Elmet and Rothwell (Alec Shelbrooke) and my hon. Friend the Member for Wrexham (Sarah Atherton) who served time on…07 Nov 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsFirst, I do not agree with the premise that I agreed to a £1.6 billion reduction of the resource departmental expenditure limit. At the time, it would have reduced in the fourth…07 Nov 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsFirst, on that particular question, the right hon. Gentleman will know that when I got my defence review—a year earlier than everyone else in the spending review—the figure for…07 Nov 2022HANSARDFleet Solid Support ShipsIf the hon. Gentleman can point to a single complex military contract, whether in air, land or sea, that has not used international or partner supplier chains, I will be amazed.…07 Nov 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsThe hon. Member has read out a list of claims. I will be happy to write to him to answer those claims. I suspect the people of Scotland are now rather thankful they have a nuclear…07 Nov 2022HANSARDFleet Solid Support ShipsI will certainly ignore the rewriting of history other than to say that we still take pride in the ships that we build in this country. Some of our ships are the very best in the…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemDefence procurement is some of the most complex in Government, but our defence and security industrial strategy, published last year, represents a step change that will see…07 Nov 2022HANSARDArmistice DayYes, and I am grateful to my hon. Friend. Our armed forces have fought throughout time for the safety and security of our country and they continue to do so today against all…07 Nov 2022HANSARDFleet Solid Support ShipsThe initial phase of awarding the contract for fleet solid support ships is due very soon. As that is market-sensitive, I will limit my response to saying that what I expect from…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemWe need to try to ensure that we find the funding to fund all those capabilities, and we must ensure at the time of placing a contract that we have certainty in the costs overall,…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemI am sorry to disappoint the right hon. Gentleman, but I did not say in my evidence that it was with Thales that I placed a contract for NLAW replacement, and many other people…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemWhen we published the defence Command Paper, we committed to invest £23 billion in our land capabilities over the next 10 years—a significant investment in land. That was…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemWhere do I start? What is independent? I will tell the hon. Gentleman what is not independent, which is the SNP Government in Scotland placing a contract for ferries in Turkey.…07 Nov 2022HANSARDArmistice DayNever forget the Chorley Pals, Mr Speaker. The Accrington Pals played a hugely significant role on the frontline as part of the 94th Infantry Brigade. In many areas, they bore the…07 Nov 2022HANSARDArmistice DayI am pleased to confirm that commemorations across the UK will take place as normal to mark remembrance. I will attend the ceremony at the Cenotaph on Whitehall on Remembrance…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemFirst, we expect General Dynamics to stick within the terms of its contract, and we will stick to our side of the contract. The user validation trials, which are the first steps…07 Nov 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsThe hon. Gentleman knows that there are lots of types of capabilities: there are numbers, there is equipment that is going out of service to be replaced by other equipment, and…07 Nov 2022HANSARDTopical QuestionsIn recent days, Russia has made a range of allegations against the UK and other international partners that are clearly designed to distract from the attention on Russia’s illegal…07 Nov 2022HANSARDDefence Procurement SystemFirst, just like in Canada, industrial complexes are facing post-covid skills challenges and indeed supply chain challenges—because our ships, just like everybody else’s ships,…07 Nov 2022