Contributions
400 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARD809 Naval Air SquadronMy Lords, the noble Lord has greater knowledge than I have in this area. As far as the Lightning is concerned, we are fully committed to the 138, as we originally set out. We will…11 Mar 2024HANSARD809 Naval Air SquadronMy Lords, the noble Baroness asked a very detailed question. The key is that, as the threat changes, we need to change the capability to meet it. We work on very long lead times.…11 Mar 2024HANSARD809 Naval Air SquadronMy noble friend makes a very good point. I think we addressed this last week or the week before. An enormous amount of work is being undertaken on the question of recruitment and,…11 Mar 2024HANSARDDefence Acquisition ReformMy Lords, I entirely agree with my noble friend. There is no doubt that the private sector and the Ministry of Defence need to work much more closely together to ensure that the…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, my noble friend makes some very good points, a number of which we can all relate to. The Armed Forces continue to meet all their current commitments, keeping the country…07 Mar 2024HANSARDDefence Acquisition ReformMy Lords, I agree. The Americans have a very good expression: “soup to nuts”. It is a very simple way of describing any project from one end right to the other. I believe that is…07 Mar 2024HANSARDDefence Acquisition ReformI agree with almost everything that the noble Lord said. Certainly, the immediacy of the situation has already introduced into the procurement cycle within the Ministry of Defence…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, the Government have no plans to reintroduce national service or any form of conscription. Since 1963 it has been the policy of successive Governments that the best way…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, the noble Lord makes some very good points but, as I have said before, increasingly it is about capability rather than pure numbers. We are facing some widely known…07 Mar 2024HANSARDDefence Acquisition ReformMy Lords I thank the noble Lord, Lord Coaker, and the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, for their questions and their very well-made points. The whole point of this paper is to look…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, the Government are doing all they can to speed up the process. The situation is improving, but the point is very well made. The sooner we can get enthusiastic men and…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceI cannot disagree with the noble Lord, but we have to rely on the fact that all three forces have a global reputation and are professional, highly trained and the envy of many. To…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, we are. The current mix that we have in the Army is about 70,000 ground troops and about 30,000 reserves. The 100,000 target is where we are focused at the moment. The…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, the way we address the threat is a constantly changing situation. Whether through procurement or through individual members of the forces, there is a constant ratio of…07 Mar 2024HANSARDMilitary National ServiceMy Lords, I entirely agree. In a past life, I had something to do with cadets and I also trained Junior Leaders soldiers. There is no doubt that the success of those particular…07 Mar 2024HANSARDSituation in the Red SeaMy Lords, the noble Lord makes an extremely good point. Yes, there is quite some activity, but I am sure I need not point out to your Lordships that the Houthis pay scant regard…29 Feb 2024HANSARDSituation in the Red SeaMy Lords, I entirely agree with my noble friend’s point. However, it is the decision of each individual sovereign state to decide at what level they wish to become involved.29 Feb 2024HANSARDSituation in the Red SeaMy Lords, let me start by making it absolutely clear that the Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden are illegal and intolerable. Their reckless and dangerous…29 Feb 2024HANSARDSituation in the Red SeaThe noble Lord makes a very good point. I do not know the precise situation of where we are, but I know that there is great flexibility in transitioning to the new fleet. I will…29 Feb 2024HANSARDSituation in the Red SeaI admit that I look at this from a slightly different perspective. We are launching a missile in self-defence at an incoming attack vehicle, which is attempting to hit something…29 Feb 2024