Queen’s Speech

Lord Sterling of Plaistow Excerpts

Wednesday 19th May 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sterling of Plaistow (Con)]

My Lords, this is the first time I have had the pleasure of being in the Chamber for well over a year. The help and service from all those who have kept Parliament going during the pandemic has been quite splendid. In particular, the IT support team has been more than invaluable to me. Under such pressure, Parliament and government departments have served this country well.

The noble Lord, Lord Udny-Lister, made a marvellous maiden speech about where we are today, particularly tilting towards where he feels developments in the Pacific Far East will be. I get the daily shipping statistics and can tell the House that the speed and acceleration of trade in what would be described as the supply chain is moving rapidly in that direction. It has been moving that way for the last 10 years.

The key word in Her Majesty’s most gracious Speech about the defence of the realm was “modernisation”. Following the outcome of the recent elections, the Prime Minister spoke about levelling up and said that we must deliver. This is fundamentally important. Over the years, many promises have been made but rarely delivered by whomever was in government. This lack of delivery extends on a much wider front than just to our armed services.

Productivity is crucial. We have an abundance of entrepreneurial talent throughout Great Britain, but are in serious danger of stifling such endeavours through unnecessary bureaucracy, regulatory requirements and increasing legal interventions. The free-world democracies all seem to suffer from the same problem. It is worth remembering that, towards the end, the USSR also enjoyed the same overwhelming bureaucratic arthritis.

In practice, all societies need the possibility of some form of control. The reverse seems to be the tendency in our armed services. Our finest and brightest young men and women are joining because they wish to be part of an exciting and rewarding future. Personnel and workforce structures must be transformed to reflect modern society. Our chiefs and senior civil servants must have the authority to make rapid procurement decisions and cut through the bureaucratic labyrinths. Defence procurement delivers late at a price we cannot afford. Major delays always lead to greater costs and, more importantly, endanger the lives of those serving on the front line.

As we accelerate out of the pandemic, for the first time in a generation we have the opportunity truly to reassert global Britain, with all the elements of government truly pulling together and leading from the front. If we do not level up, deliver and modernise, we will not bring our people with us. We will be dead in the water. If there were ever a time that our island peoples desperately want and need to believe that we can have a successful future, it is now.

As many other Peers have already mentioned, our nation’s flagship, HMS “Queen Elizabeth” is assembling its task force to depart in a few days’ time. It is the very embodiment of this Government’s investment and ambitions. We can succeed, and we will.

There is vast experience in this House in understanding the needs of both our foreign service and our armed services. This huge reservoir of knowledge should play an influential part in helping the other place with its decisions. I totally support the request from the noble Baroness, Lady Smith, to have a full two-day debate in this House on the role of defence; many of us have requested that for several years. It is hugely important if we are not to be caught unawares in future.