80th Anniversary of Victory in Europe and Victory over Japan

Baroness Rafferty Excerpts

Friday 9th May 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Rafferty (Lab)]

My Lords, it is an honour to speak on this important day and to follow the remarks of the noble Baroness, Lady Harris of Richmond, who has already praised the many brilliant stories and speeches that we have heard today. I add my congratulations to the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Peterborough on an excellent maiden speech.

My mother, Bridget, trained as a nurse in the late 1930s and throughout the war. Her final assignment was nursing prisoners of war in the military hospital at Bridge of Earn in Perthshire in 1944. I recall her talking of the horrific, maggot-infested wounds of the German prisoners of war and their shattered physical condition, and her saying, “They were so young”. One story that has stuck with me was an instance in which the rules of non-engagement were broken at Christmas. A group of carol singers were touring the wards in a candlelit procession to cheer and comfort patients and staff. They were forbidden to enter the enemy wards, but when they stopped outside the German ward, the doors were flung open and silence gave way to song, as the soldiers joined in the chorus of “Silent Night”—"Stille Nacht”.

My father, Michael Rafferty, served in the Merchant Navy on the convoy ships, so crucial to maintaining supplies, communication cables and support for other services. I had the privilege of seeing the remnants of his ship, the “Port Chalmers”, in the war museum in Malta during a recent visit. The ship was part of Operation Pedestal, which set sail to save Malta from surrender, one of over 14 convoy ships supported by two battleships, three aircraft carriers, 32 destroyers and seven submarines. It was the largest convoy expedition and escort to date and, according to naval historians, it was also the most dangerous to that point in the war.

Malta was strategically pivotal to the control of the Mediterranean and Suez Canal. The convoy was pounded by enemy fire—mines and air—along the way. The “Port Chalmers” played a key role, as it was the convoy’s flagship as well as carrying critical supplies to beleaguered Malta. It was the first to reach Valletta harbour, while other ships sustained severe damage or were sunk. It arrived relatively unscathed to cheering crowds. The mortality rate for merchant seamen was higher than for all other services. My father never spoke about his experience, but it is hard to imagine just how terrifying it must have felt to be floating in a tin can, swinging in a hammock and listening to the constant clanging of the ship—a sitting duck waiting for the worst to happen.

My mother was a member of the Civil Nursing Reserve, set up in 1938 to boost capacity within the service as the Government became aware of the scale of the nursing shortage. The UK entered the Covid-19 pandemic with no reserve capacity and tried to create some headroom with a temporary register. This generated another 20,000 nurses to provide a buffer zone to build surge capacity. The temporary register closed in March 2024, but it is imperative that we learn the lessons of Covid in terms of building reserve capacity.

My mother was also a member of the Civil Defence Corps after the war, which trained volunteers in community emergency preparedness. Module 1 of the Covid inquiry, chaired by the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Hallett, concluded:

“Preparedness for and resilience to a whole-system civil emergency must be treated in much the same way as we treat a threat from a hostile state”.


Does my noble friend the Minister agree that we must implement the Covid inquiry’s recommendations within the UK and devolved Governments to prepare for a whole-system civil emergency? I urge your Lordships’ House to reflect on the broader lessons of VE Day in securing our combined health and security needs for the future.