Oral Answers to Questions

Chi Onwurah Excerpts

Monday 17th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

What those events do show is that we have been right throughout in maintaining the need to continue with a strategic nuclear deterrent as the ultimate guarantor of Britain’s sovereignty and freedom of action. The world is a very uncertain place, while the time horizons for the provision of military equipment are very long, and we are looking forward 40 or 50 years in the planning. The events of the past months and years show that it would be a very brave man indeed who said that there would be no threat to our sovereignty and independence over that time horizon.

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

T7. Last week, the Under-Secretary of State for Defence, the hon. Member for Ludlow (Mr Dunne), admitted that he had wasted £50 million on the Cipher cyber-security project. This weekend, we heard that the NATO website and other websites came under attack following the recent actions in Ukraine. Will the Minister give us a timely assessment of the UK’s and NATO’s cyber readiness, particularly with regard to the situation in Ukraine?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Philip Dunne)]

The Cipher contract cost the MOD £46 million. Work under the contract ceased in June of last year at the end of a protracted assessment phase, which concluded that the project would not meet the full defence capability requirement at value for money for the taxpayer. I remind the hon. Lady that the contract was placed in November 2008. It is a classic example of the legacy of out-of-control procurement contracts that we were left when we took office in May 2010.

Oral Answers to Questions

Chi Onwurah Excerpts

Monday 15th April 2013 Commons Chamber

The Secretary of State was asked—

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

1. What steps he is taking to ensure veterans have access to appropriate mental health support.

[The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr Mark Francois)]

Before I answer the question, I am sure that the whole House will wish to join me in paying tribute to Lance Corporal Jamie Webb of the 1st Battalion The Mercian Regiment, who died in hospital in Kandahar on Tuesday 26 March 2013 from wounds received in Afghanistan on Monday 25 March. He died in the service of his country and our thoughts, and those of the whole House, are with his family and friends.

The Government are committed to ensuring that each and every one of the roughly one in 10 adults in this country who are veterans receive the support they require from across the whole of Government. Responsibility for delivering mental health support lies with the Department of Health, with which the Ministry of Defence works closely. Together we are providing greater access to mental health care for the first six months after discharge, an increase in the number of veterans mental health professionals, a 24-hour helpline in partnership with Combat Stress, and an online mental health support and advice website called the Big White Wall.

[Chi Onwurah]

The north-east provides more servicemen and women, proportionally, than any other region in the country, so I am pleased to say that we have award-winning mental health services such as a veterans well-being assessment and liaison pilot, in partnership with Combat Stress and the Royal British Legion. They expect a surge in referrals as our troops withdraw from Afghanistan next year, but the pilot ends in March. What plans does the Minister have to meet the expected increase in demand for mental health services?

[Mr Francois]

As I say, this will partly be a responsibility for the Department of Health, with which we work closely, but I take the whole issue very seriously, and I have tried personally to meet as many people as I can who are involved in this issue, for instance Sir Simon Wessely at King’s, Andrew Cameron at Combat Stress and Dr Hugh Milroy at Veterans Aid. The Government will continue to reach out to these and other experts to provide the right care for those to whom we owe such a debt of gratitude.

Future Reserves 2020

Chi Onwurah Excerpts

Thursday 8th November 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

That may have been my hon. Friend’s experience, but it is not the advice that I have received, including advice from reserve units that already contain significant numbers of ex-regulars. When I visited a reserve unit last night, a significant number of ex-regular officers and NCOs were on parade.

We will, of course, have to ensure that moving to the reserves is not only financially attractive, but a smooth process. I know that there has been a problem with ex-regulars encountering delays and being required to jump through unnecessary hoops, but we should be able to deal with that, given that these are people who, by definition, already have the skills and the training that we are seeking in the reserve forces. The question of how we can deliver financial incentivisation is one of the issues for consultation, and I should welcome my hon. Friend’s input.

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

The north-east provides a higher proportion of recruits to the armed forces than any other region in England, but all too often they find their return to civvy street very challenging, particularly when it comes to unemployment. Will the Government consider widening the kitemark to include employers’ records on hiring veterans and military spouses?

[Mr Hammond]

That would be a separate issue, and I do not want to confuse the two issues. It is an important area, however, and, as the hon. Lady will know, the Prime Minister has recently appointed Lord Ashcroft to act as a champion for veterans’ transition, focusing in particular on how we support veterans out of the service and into employment. I would not want the House to have the impression that large numbers of ex-service people are unemployed, however. Some 90% of those service leavers who are seeking work have found employment within six months of leaving. Given the economic backdrop, I think that is quite a reasonable achievement.

Oral Answers to Questions

Chi Onwurah Excerpts

Monday 11th June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

I accept that there will be a certain amount of scepticism. In relation to the equipment plan, there are two parts to the answer. First, the armed forces committee has confirmed that the equipment plan that we set out and funded does deliver the capabilities required for Future Force 2020. Secondly, we have submitted the programme to the National Audit Office for review, and we will publish the result of that review in due course. In respect of the 55% of the annual budget that is not taken up by the equipment plan, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and Members in all parts of the House will look to see a defence budget that comes in within the spending plan total, as they did in 2011-12.

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

11. What progress he has made on promoting innovation through his Department’s procurement processes.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Peter Luff)]

Innovation ensures that we are able to access and deliver technology into our systems and equipment to provide continuing operational advantage to our armed forces. That is why our recent White Paper, “National Security Through Technology”, highlighted the importance of investment in science and technology. It also recognised the contribution of commercial investment in developing new technologies. Using open competition in defence acquisition ensures that we are able to deliver the best and most innovative capabilities at an affordable price. In addition, the success of the Centre for Defence Enterprise in bringing through suppliers new to defence, particularly small and medium-sized businesses, which are important sources of innovation, led to our decision to broaden the centre’s remit, including the mentoring of smaller companies.

[Chi Onwurah]

During the recess, BAE Systems announced the closure of the historic Scotswood road site in Newcastle, with the loss of more than 300 jobs. This brings to an end a 165-year history of skilled engineering, the longest continuous site of tank manufacture anywhere in the world, as well as bringing great distress and uncertainty to my constituents. Does the Minister agree that refusing to take into account the wider economic implications of defence procurement undermines not only innovation, but jobs and communities across the country? Will he agree to meet me and a delegation from BAE to see what can be done to save the site?

[Peter Luff]

I have enormous respect for the hon. Lady’s expression of concern for her constituents, and I pay tribute to the work that those people have done over many years to support the armed forces. However, it is not true to say that the policy that she describes is the cause of the problem. The problem is that BAE Systems has not won contracts at this site. Meanwhile, the Warrior sustainment programme, the Scout SV programme, the Foxhound programme and the integration of the urgent operational requirements continue around the United Kingdom, generating thousands of highly skilled and important jobs. I very much regret that BAE Systems has been uncompetitive, but it is not the fault of the Government. The company must answer why it could not compete successfully for contracts.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Robathan]

The House will know that Commander West has been appointed as the first woman commander of a major warship, HMS Portland, and that Commander Moore has become the first woman to command 1st Patrol Boat Squadron. Both appointments were made entirely on merit, and they are very well deserved. I think that the whole House would wish to congratulate those two women and all others who come into such positions of authority.

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

In response to my earlier question about the closure of BAE Systems on Scotswood road, the Minister seemed to prefer to criticise BAE Systems, and therefore some of my constituents, than to answer my request for a meeting to see whether we could find a way to save these jobs.

[Peter Luff]

It is always a pleasure to meet the hon. Lady. I extended an invitation to her to discuss another subject, but she did not respond. I am always happy to meet her—[Interruption.] On the strictly professional matter of innovation. I intended no criticism of her constituents whatever. They have done a first-rate job. However, the other companies put in lower, better value bids and so won the contracts. That is the problem, and there is no answer to that.

Hostage Rescue Operation (Nigeria)

Chi Onwurah Excerpts

Tuesday 13th March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hammond]

I welcome my hon. Friend’s comments. That is absolutely our position: when a UK citizen is deprived of their liberty, wherever in the world, we will deploy all the resources available to us to seek their safe return.

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

I worked as an engineer in Nigeria for several years, and I can only pay tribute to the courage of Mr McManus and his colleague in facing captivity for so long. I welcome the assurances about working with Nigeria to address the challenge of terrorism, but many British engineers do go abroad to work, partly because of a lack of opportunities in this country, so will the Secretary of State work with his colleagues across government to ensure that these people are well informed about the threats they may face, and that we are well informed of the numbers working abroad and the work they do? We must properly value their contribution.

[Mr Hammond]

The Foreign Office maintains travel advice to UK travellers in respect of all countries and will, of course, update it, but I take on board the hon. Lady’s comments about engineers and people working in similar professions, who of course play a very important ambassadorial role for the UK as they go about their daily business. We seek to understand where people are although, of course, we do not have formal registration requirements in any sense.

Oral Answers to Questions

Chi Onwurah Excerpts

Monday 16th May 2011 Commons Chamber

[Dr Fox]

Those who wish us to reopen the strategic defence and security review, and who are looking at the same real world and at the same financial constraints, need to tell us whether they would provide a larger defence budget. If they continue with the same assumptions in the same real world but do not increase the budget, they will see the same outcome because they will be under the same constraints. Perhaps the right hon. Gentleman will finally tell us whether Labour intends to retain the same defence budget or to reduce the defence budget, because that is the key element in the equation.

[Chi Onwurah (Newcastle upon Tyne Central) (Lab)]

4. What his policy is on the use of defence procurement to support and stimulate advanced manufacturing.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Peter Luff)]

Advanced manufacturing industry in the UK makes such an important contribution to defence and the armed forces. We have recently concluded public consultation on the Green Paper “Equipment, Support and Technology for UK Defence and Security”, in which we make it clear that the purpose of defence procurement is to deliver the capabilities that the armed forces need, now and in the future. We will set out our future policy on the issue in a White Paper later in the year.

[Chi Onwurah]

Last month BAE Systems announced 100 job losses at its plant in Scotswood, Newcastle. As well as devastating families, those job losses will reduce our advanced engineering skills base. What specific measures is the Minister taking to ensure that procurement supports skills that are essential to our national infrastructure, and how do they sit with the Government’s policy of buying off the shelf without taking industrial needs into account?

[Peter Luff]

The hon. Lady tempts me to pre-judge the outcome of my own consultation, which I must not do, but let me say this: I share her passion for advanced manufacturing and I again pay tribute to its role in defence. We are committed to both a vigorous promotion of exports and boosting UK defence companies in the UK, and to boosting the work of small and medium-sized enterprises, which are innovative and bring new ideas and skills to defence. We are also committed to maintaining the science budget, as called for in response to our consultation by all those advanced manufacturing companies of which she spoke. We are doing a lot to help advanced manufacturing, but the hon. Lady will have to be a little more patient and wait until the White Paper is published.