Defence Readiness

Debate between David Reed and Caroline Nokes

Wednesday 20th May 2026 Commons Chamber

[David Reed (Exmouth and Exeter East) (Con)]

It is an honour to wind up the final day of debate on the King’s Speech for His Majesty’s loyal Opposition. We have heard many sterling speeches from Members across this House, and I will turn to some of them shortly.

First, however, I want to pose once more the central question of this debate, and ask every Member to answer it honestly: is our national defence truly ready? My honest assessment is no, it is not. War is no longer a matter of history. The international order we have all lived under is fracturing. War has broken out across multiple continents, and rapid technological advancement and the accelerating consequences of climate change are compounding an already dangerous volatility. The world is not as it was, and we cannot afford to govern as though it is.

While it is encouraging that so many Members are engaging with this epoch-defining issue, it is equally clear that there is a “corrosive complacency” at the heart of this Government. Those are not my words; they belong to Lord Robertson, a former Labour Defence Secretary and a former NATO Secretary-General and one of the most distinguished voices in this country’s defence establishment. He did not use them lightly, and he directed them squarely at this Prime Minister and this Chancellor. When a man of that stature speaks in those terms about his own party’s Government, this House would do well to listen. More than that, there should be no politics in acknowledging the reality that stares us plainly in the face. Where politics legitimately begins is in the harder questions about where the money comes from and how and what we choose to spend it on.

Turning to the speeches, opening the batting was the Chair of the Defence Committee, the hon. Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi), and I think we can all agree that he made quite a brave and powerful speech. He laid bare the holes in the Government’s approach to defence in a constructive way, as I have seen him do repeatedly in his work as Chair of his Committee. It was also good to see him wearing his Royal College of Defence Studies tie.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Chingford and Woodford Green (Sir Iain Duncan Smith) made an excellent speech, as is to be expected. He touched on the supply chain issues and reliance on China, and I will come back to those points later.

The right hon. Member for Ilford North (Wes Streeting) is no longer in his place, but it was quite intimidating to see the Streetonian praetorian guard out in full force. He articulated the weighty issues we face as a country and I seriously hope that defence issues are front and centre of his coup d’état attempts.

My right hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison) illustrated lessons from world war two, and what we need to learn and act on without delay, points that were reinforced by my right hon. Friend the Member for New Forest East (Sir Julian Lewis).

I think we can all agree that the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North (Catherine McKinnell) is doing a fantastic job as trade envoy to Italy. She called out some of the supply chains that she is seeing in her work with Italy around the Global Combat Air Programme and pointed out the Government’s dither regarding the slow release of the defence investment plan.

We also had strong contributions from the hon. Members for Liverpool West Derby (Ian Byrne), for Tunbridge Wells (Mike Martin) and for Southend East and Rochford (Mr Alaba), my right hon. Friends the Member for Wetherby and Easingwold (Sir Alec Shelbrooke) and for The Wrekin (Mark Pritchard), my hon. Friend the Member for Gosport (Dame Caroline Dinenage), the hon. Members for Hemel Hempstead (David Taylor), for Wolverhampton West (Warinder Juss), for Cheltenham (Max Wilkinson), for Leeds South West and Morley (Mark Sewards) and for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie), and my hon. Friends the Members for South Shropshire (Stuart Anderson) and for South West Devon (Rebecca Smith). There were many more contributions—too many to mention, Madam Deputy Speaker—but it was great to see so many of my constituency neighbours from the south-west. As the Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry has championed repeatedly, it is a region that will play a decisive role in our defence readiness going forward.

Like many in this House, I am utterly tired, if not bored, of asking when the defence investment plan will be published, and I am not even going to bother asking about the planned defence readiness Bill. The Government set their own deadline last autumn and 10 months on it is still nowhere to be seen. For the large prime contractors, those too big to fail, the calculation is simple: they leverage their workforce and industrial base to force the Government’s hand. But for smaller companies in the supply chain, the picture is far bleaker. With a meagre number of contracts being awarded, they are being starved of work. If they have not already gone out of business, many are reaching the same conclusion: if you want to grow, you have to go. And go they will. The United States and European defence markets are rising to the moment. Companies and finance will follow the business. The Government’s indecision and delay is placing British defence at the back of the queue at precisely the moment when the queue has never mattered more.

That leaves me to challenge a phrase used too freely by Defence Ministers: sovereign capability. For many of the areas where we most want to excel, true sovereignty is a myth. The best AI needs the best chips, and we do not own the means of production. Our options are either our American allies or China. I know which one I choose. The Government talk a good game on drones, but most small aerial drone systems depend on neodymium magnets and China controls over 90% of global supply. That is not a supply chain problem; it is a strategic vulnerability. What is truly in our national interest is to identify these dependencies—a point reinforced by the Chair of the Defence Committee, whose Committee is looking at this—and swiftly partner with allies who can help to address them. I do not see that joined-up work happening across the Government.

That leads me to the structure of our public defence establishment. We have roughly 55,000 MOD civil servants, yet we recently struggled to deploy a single, partially functional destroyer to protect our sovereign base area in Cyprus, a point expanded on by the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells. There are many fantastic civil servants in the MOD—I have personally had the privilege to work alongside a number of them—but I cannot believe I am alone in seeing the imbalance in that equation.

Lastly, I turn to our service personnel and veterans. At every UK training establishment, the law of armed conflict is rigorously instilled into every recruit and officer cadet. That legal framework underpins a service person’s conduct throughout their career and on operations. I speak with the lived experience as a former Royal Marine. Where someone transgresses from those rules, they are investigated and if found guilty the full weight of the law is brought to bear, and rightly so.

However, the Government must confront an uncomfortable truth. By dragging veterans through the courts decades after the event, as will likely occur under the Government’s Northern Ireland troubles legislation, the process becomes the punishment. Indefinite legal jeopardy, with no discernible end, causes profound and lasting mental anguish. Apply that logic to serving personnel operating in unimaginably violent environments: hesitation in the heat of battle, borne of legal fear rather than military judgments, can cost lives. For most of us in this House, it is impossible to truly comprehend what that means, but we must try. We owe it to the people who place themselves in harm’s way on our behalf to give them the assurance that this House has their back.

I want to extend a hand of co-operation to the Government—an olive branch offered by the Leader of the Opposition and carelessly dismissed by the Prime Minister. In this new era of geopolitical instability, we want to support the Government in delivering the defence readiness that this country deserves. The shadow Secretary of State for Defence, my hon. Friend the Member for South Suffolk (James Cartlidge), has set out the Conservatives’ proposals clearly. We will continue to work on them, and I hope the Government will receive them in the spirit in which they are intended.

Our country needs politicians who can rise to the moment. This is that moment. With that, I wish the Government Godspeed in this new Session, for it is not their party’s fortune that depends on it but our nation’s security.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)]

Before I call the Secretary of State, I would like to say that, while I appreciate that I am preaching to the choir, because every Member present is indeed present, perhaps the message can get back to colleagues who are not present that page 4 of the guide to Chamber courtesies indicates that if you have contributed to the debate, you must return for the wind-up speeches. I call the Secretary of State.

Mobile Phones and Social Media: Use by Children

Debate between David Reed and Caroline Nokes

Tuesday 20th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)]

This is the final question.

[David Reed (Exmouth and Exeter East) (Con)]

I am so happy that the Government are finally waking up to this issue and how serious it is, and that there is a cross-party consensus on the need to ban social media for under-16s. Social media platforms are designed to be addictive; we all know that. Most adults cannot control themselves, so how can we expect our children to? Enforcement will be the key issue, so would the Secretary of State please give her views on what she thinks enforcement could look like and on what she has already learned from our Australian friends, who are leading the charge on this with legislation?

Sir David Amess Adjournment Debate

Debate between David Reed and Caroline Nokes

Thursday 12th September 2024 Commons Chamber

[David Reed (Exmouth and Exeter East) (Con)]

I congratulate all hon. Members who have delivered their maiden speech. They have all spoken about their constituency with wit, passion and enthusiasm, and I have no doubt that they will be strong representatives for their constituents.

It is a real privilege to deliver my maiden speech during the Sir David Amess general debate. Sir David was a stalwart Member of this House and was barbarically murdered in the line of parliamentary duty. As I stand here in this most historic of Chambers, I look over to Sir David’s memorial plaque behind the Government Benches and, as I start life as a Member of Parliament, I hope I can be a strong voice and a man of action for my constituents, as Sir David was for his.

I start with a heartfelt thank you to the people of Exmouth and Exeter East, for they are the reason I am here. They have put their trust in me to represent them as the first Member of Parliament for our new constituency. It is a responsibility that will always weigh heavily on my shoulders.

I also say thank you to my family and campaign team, who have been bastions of love and support through the long journey to this place. For the record, I want it to be known that getting married during the early stages of a general election campaign makes for an interesting start. Thank you to my wife for being a constant voice of reason and my rock throughout.

Although Exmouth and Exeter East is a new constituency, it was created by amalgamating areas from three previous constituencies, of which East Devon was by far the largest contributor. Referring to all my predecessors, as is custom in a maiden speech, may, therefore, mark me to the Speaker’s Office as someone who does not abide by time limits. I say this because all three of my predecessors have made significant contributions to local and national life.

Simon Jupp, the former Member for East Devon, worked hard for his constituents and campaigned relentlessly as chair of the all-party parliamentary group for the great south-west. He helped to secure investment into the region and always championed our part of the world. I consider Simon to be a friend, and his contribution to this House will be missed, as will his encyclopaedic knowledge of local Devon ciders.

Exmouth and Exeter East also incorporates one ward each from the Exeter and Central Devon constituencies. The new hon. Member for Exeter (Steve Race) no doubt gave the right hon. Sir Ben Bradshaw the respect he deserves in his maiden speech. However, I would like to pay my own tribute to Sir Ben, and I know that his judgment and leadership will be missed by the Labour party.

Lastly, I have been blessed to inherit the beautiful Exe valley from my right hon. Friend the Member for Central Devon (Mel Stride), who continues to serve and lead in this House. His loss is my gain, but I will ensure that I diligently represent the good people of the Exe valley as he has for the last 14 years.

For those who have not had the good fortune to visit Exmouth and Exeter East, please allow me to indulge in a Cook’s tour of my new constituency, and to give Members a flavour of the geography, the history, the settlements, the people and the organisations that make my part of the world so irresistibly enchanting.

Starting at the mouth of the River Exe, going out to the heathlands of Woodbury Common and finishing in the countryside above the city of Exeter, the constituency of Exmouth and Exeter East has it all: beautiful beaches; serene, open and arable landscapes; the eastern part of a thriving city; vibrant towns; and picturesque villages. Many parts of my new constituency have been inhabited for several millennia, with areas such as Topsham being settled by the Celts, turned into a port by the Romans and expanded by the Saxons.

Possibly our most famous resident has been Sir Walter Raleigh who was an Elizabethan statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. Although he achieved much in his life, I will do my best not to meet the same fate, which was to be tried for treason before meeting his end outside this Chamber in Old Palace Yard.

We have some fantastic organisations across Exmouth and Exeter East, such as the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, which works tirelessly to keep locals and tourists safe in the waters around the constituency. We have global experts working to advance the frontiers of knowledge on weather and climate at the Met Office’s headquarters. We have Clinton Devon Estates, which is ably responsible for the stewardship of much of the land in the southern area of the constituency. As an example, the Clinton Devon Estates team, working with the Environment Agency, recently demonstrated to the world how to proactively regenerate land by completing the lower Otter restoration project.

As is to be expected, we are fortunate to have some of the best farming produce anywhere in the country. For those looking to visit, I highly recommend stopping in for a pasty at Darts farm or Greendale farm shop.

However, the organisation that has the most special place in my heart is Commando Training Centre Royal Marines. For decades, the training camp in Lympstone and the area of Woodbury Common have been the proving ground for all wannabe Royal Marines, and for those from across our armed forces who aspire to become commandos. Having endured Royal Marine commando training over 16 years ago, I am happy to announce that I have learned, once again, to enjoy spending time on Woodbury Common, without fear of being cold, wet, hungry and covered in gorse thistles.

The Royal Marines is a proud organisation, in its 360th year in service to our country. Sadly it had become increasingly rare for a former Royal Marine to enter this House as a Member. However, Royal Marines must share the same tendencies that buses are afflicted by: none turn up for eons, then four turn up at the same time. Although the other three former Royal Marines, the hon. and gallant Members for Plymouth Moor View (Fred Thomas), for Halesowen (Alex Ballinger) and for Birmingham Selly Oak (Al Carns) opted to join the party now in government, I know that the kinship that binds Royal Marines together through shared adversity will benefit this House, and, I hope, provide combative but constructive debate.

While Exmouth and Exeter East has much to be celebrated, it also has its fair share of issues. From an aged and degraded sewerage network to antisocial behaviour, there are many issues that my constituents have placed trust in me to help improve. For too long we have built new houses in the area without delivering appropriate and corresponding infrastructure. I fear the new Government’s top-down housing targets will further compound that issue, and I will do all I can to ensure that the right mix of houses are built, in the right places, with the right infrastructure and public consultation.

I am also deeply concerned that large parts of Exmouth and Exeter East will be tarmacked over within one generation. Of course we need new homes for the next generation, so that they can live near their friends, family and work, but we must have a tempered approach and ensure that we do not overdevelop and destroy our countryside, and the culture of our historic towns and villages. There are also areas that I will work hard to improve across Exmouth and Exeter East, such as social care provisions, post-16 education schemes, job opportunities, transport links, and support for farmers and those in rural affairs.

It is worth voicing that this new Parliament brings the winds of political change to Devon and the wider south-west of England. As a new MP, I am open and willing to work with fellow south-west MPs, regardless of political affinity, to ensure we drive as much investment and opportunity as possible to our part of the world, in a joined-up way.

In an increasingly connected world, I believe our MPs must have a firm understanding of the national and international issues that affect us, and most importantly how these issues affect our constituencies. For much of my adult life, I have fought hard in several organisations to keep our United Kingdom safe and prosperous, both in the physical and the digital environment. We are on the precipice of a new industrial revolution. Frontier technologies, such as artificial intelligence, supercomputing and nanobiotechnology, will radically change our world and the relationship we have with it. It is imperative that the new Government understand these issues and work across the public and private sector to ensure that our United Kingdom remains a technological global leader.

There is no getting away from the fact that the international system is becoming more volatile. It is deeply sad that conversations about international conflict are no longer hypothetical. War has broken out across multiple global regions, and we must act without delay to increase defence spending to meet the threats that are clearly present. Anthropogenic climate change has long ceased to be purely an academic debate—it is visible and happening now. We must continue to work closely with international partners to reduce our overall global carbon emissions.

It is beyond a faux pas to speak in communist tones from the Conservative Benches—I could risk making the same treasonous mistake as Sir Walter Raleigh. However, there is modern resonance in Lenin’s purported quote:

“There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen.”

In isolation, any of the points I have raised have the ability to cause mass societal and environmental change. When decades happening in weeks become the new normal, we must keep pace to ensure the United Kingdom remains strong, allied and ahead of the pack in an ever-changing world.

My final message is to the people of Exmouth and Exeter East who sent me to this House. I promise that I will always fight for us, and that I will represent us to the best of my ability, while I have the privilege of serving as their Member of Parliament.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)]

I call Jonathan Davies to make his maiden speech.