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Scheduled Event - Monday 8th December - Add to calendar
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Lords - Oral questions - Main Chamber
Problems confronting the Royal Navy’s submarine force.
MP: Lord West of Spithead
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 08 Dec 2025
Royal Navy Submarine Force

"My Lords, our submarine force is in a parlous state—the worst in my 60 years of service. Successive delays in ordering, a lack of dry dock investment, the failure to recruit and train the requisite nuclear personnel, training delays for those for those we have got, lack of spares and …..."
Lord West of Spithead - View Speech

View all Lord West of Spithead (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Royal Navy Submarine Force
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 08 Dec 2025
Royal Navy Submarine Force

"To ask His Majesty’s Government what measures they have implemented to resolve problems confronting the Royal Navy’s submarine force...."
Lord West of Spithead - View Speech

View all Lord West of Spithead (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Royal Navy Submarine Force
Written Question
Army: Officers
Wednesday 3rd December 2025

Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many one-star and above officers were serving in the military on 1 June, and how many civil servants of a grade equivalent to ‘one star’ and above were employed in the Civil Service in the Ministry of Defence.

Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The requested data for individuals serving in the military was not gathered on the specified date. However, as of both 1 April and 1 July 2025, there were 551 military one-star officers (NATO Rank OF-6) and above.

As of 1 June 2025, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and its four Executive Agencies - DE&S, SDA, DSTL, and UKHO - employed 518 Civil Servants at one-star equivalent grade or above. This figure includes personnel outside the Senior Civil Service but of equivalent grade, with Executive Agency grades aligned to the closest Civil Service equivalents where applicable.

Quarterly UK service personnel statistics are published on gov.uk at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/statistics/quarterly-service-personnel-statistics-2025

The latest MOD biannual civilian personnel report for October 2025 can be found at the following link:

www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mod-biannual-civilian-personnel-report-october-2025/mod-biannual-civilian-personnel-report-october-2025#further-information

Speech in Lords Chamber - Tue 02 Dec 2025
British Embassy in Damascus

"Mr Lords, are the Government concerned about the seeming resurgence of ISIL, and what is actually being done about that?..."
Lord West of Spithead - View Speech

View all Lord West of Spithead (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: British Embassy in Damascus
Written Question
Passports: Shipping
Tuesday 25th November 2025

Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made an assessment of the value of introducing a maritime passport.

Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

My Department’s priority is to ensure that UK seafarers and operators have the latest and most secure documents to facilitate their operations and movement. The maritime passport is an interesting concept that we will consider further as we move forward with updating all our documentation requirements.

Speech in Lords Chamber - Tue 25 Nov 2025
Wales: Further Devolution

"My Lords, I understand that one of our late and long-awaited frigates is to be called HMS “Cardiff”. Are we going to put any of the new factories producing defence equipment, and ammunition in particular, in Wales?..."
Lord West of Spithead - View Speech

View all Lord West of Spithead (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Wales: Further Devolution
Speech in Lords Chamber - Tue 25 Nov 2025
Russian Ship “Yantar”

"The Minister said he was going to visit the NMIC and the joint cell that was with it down in the south. I do not know whether he has done that yet, but I am glad it is up and operating fully, because we have been bad at tracking the …..."
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Division Vote (Lords)
24 Nov 2025 - Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill - View Vote Context
Lord West of Spithead (Lab) voted No - in line with the party majority and in line with the House
One of 143 Labour No votes vs 1 Labour Aye votes
Vote Tally: Ayes - 200 Noes - 244
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 24 Nov 2025
Ukraine: Forcible Removal of Children

"Should the present negotiations fail, which one hopes they will not, one of the few big levers that Europeans have, as distinct from Americans, are the frozen assets. We have been particularly poor at utilising that. Have we been putting in place mechanisms whereby, should the negotiations fail, we can …..."
Lord West of Spithead - View Speech

View all Lord West of Spithead (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Ukraine: Forcible Removal of Children