Contributions
1,451 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportI think I should go for the easy one: the current target date for the IR is the first two weeks of February, so we will go for a half on that. None of our defence personnel has…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportThe hon. Gentleman knows that I know his part of the world very well, having represented Aberdeenshire, in North East Scotland, in the Scottish Parliament with him 21 years ago.…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportYes. Although we had originally earmarked 1,500, we have scaled that down to 750 personnel ready to assist schools. Currently, we have deployed 84 to assist 52 schools and…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportOur critical defence tasks are being maintained. At the beginning of December, I visited Estonia to see our forward presence, which is working alongside the Estonians. Our…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportAs I have said right from the beginning, we are involved with the vaccine taskforce, making sure that we are on the frontline so that we can jump in and fill any gaps that emerge.…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportFrom a defence point of view—indeed, I know this from my own background as the Minister for Security—resilience was key to the integrated review. I felt it was important that the…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportI assure my hon. Friend that the four-stars and three-stars are equally busy. I just came from a meeting with a three-star and a four-star on the vaccines and the need to make…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportI have visited the north-west regional response and spoken to the Lancashire leaders and then the Greater Manchester leaders and the Mayor, Andy Burnham, on a whole range of these…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportYes. First, we have 100 personnel supporting the Welsh ambulance service and 92 personnel supporting the Welsh Government on the Welsh vaccination roll-out. Of course, one of the…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportThe hon. Member is right: it is not just the clinical touch. A vaccination process can take about 25 minutes. The actual time that someone is in front of a person with a needle…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportI am tempted to say that a good sergeant major will be able to fix a lot of that. It goes to the point that I made earlier: volunteers need managing and we need to work out their…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportI have not had numerous discussions with my Scottish counterparts because I took the decision at the beginning of this outbreak to devolve my authority and the asset to the…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportOne of the lessons—a bit like when the hon. Member for Glasgow South (Stewart Malcolm McDonald) asked about lessons from the integrated review—is that Israel, like a number of…12 Jan 2021HANSARD Covid-19 Response: Defence SupportYes, right from the very start our drivers have augmented oxygen delivery around the United Kingdom, or certainly England and Wales. We continue to do that, and I think we have a…12 Jan 2021HANSARDFuture Nuclear DeterrentOn 18 May 2011, the then Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), made an oral statement to the House, Official Report col.…17 Dec 2020HANSARD Points of Orderindicated assent.09 Dec 2020HANSARD Points of OrderI think that there has been a slight element of confusion, Madam Deputy Speaker. The management of the three services—the Navy, the Army and the Air Force—is obviously a matter…09 Dec 2020HANSARDUnacceptable Behaviours Progress ReviewToday the Ministry of Defence is publishing the Unacceptable Behaviours Progress Review and its response, a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House. The Progress…08 Dec 2020HANSARDIntegrated Review: Treasury DiscussionsThe hon. Gentleman asks a valid question about the timing of the integrated review, and there will be an integrated review at the beginning of next year. The defence announcement…07 Dec 2020HANSARDIntegrated Review: Treasury DiscussionsI have regular discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer about the integrated review, and will continue to do so on wider issues concerning defence.07 Dec 2020