Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Douglas Carswell and Peter Luff(13 years, 4 months ago)
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Mr Douglas Carswell (Clacton) (Con)
18. What assessment he has made of the performance of Eurofighter Typhoon in Operation Ellamy.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Peter Luff)
Typhoon aircraft and Apache attack helicopters have performed very well in Operation Ellamy, proving their military worth and fulfilling all the operational tasks asked of them. Typhoon, in its first multi-role mission in providing both air defence and ground attack, has demonstrated exceptional levels of survivability and, in its ground attack role, a targeting capability with minimal collateral damage, proving that it is a truly formidable aircraft.
Peter Luff
The Apache has been on about 20 sorties with no known civilian casualties—an exceptional testimony to that aircraft. Typhoon is performing exceptionally well in Libya. My hon. Friend is right that it was originally conceived as an air defence aircraft; it is now in its first multi-role combat aircraft role, and it is performing superbly. As Wing Commander J Attridge, the operational Typhoon detachment commander said,
“the Typhoon has come of age”
over the skies of Libya and we are seeing the maturation of the RAF’s first multi-role combat fast jet aircraft since world war two. We are all delighted with its performance.
Mr Carswell
Given that historically we have invested many billions in cold war era Eurofighters, but perhaps a little less on the unmanned aerial vehicles we need, does the Minister have any plans to switch resources from the former to the latter?
Peter Luff
It is not an either/or situation. UAVs have their role to play, but Typhoon is not a cold war legacy; it has proved to be an exceptionally capable modern aircraft, taking on the world and proving its exceptional worth in Libya. I am very confident of success in the large number of ongoing export campaigns around the world. Typhoon is a remarkable modern aircraft with a very bright future ahead of it.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Douglas Carswell and Peter Luff(14 years, 2 months ago)
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Mr Douglas Carswell (Clacton) (Con)
T8. The Minister has the unenviable task of running a Defence Department in a difficult financial climate. Does he agree that this makes it all the more vital that we get maximum value from our defence budget? Could we not achieve that if we bought more kit generically off the shelf, rather than through a protectionist defence industrial strategy?
Peter Luff
Obviously, the prime duty of Ministers in the Ministry of Defence is to ensure that our troops have battle-winning military superiority, but I agree with my hon. Friend that that can often be done by buying off the shelf. Strangely, in a fast-moving technological world, that can often mean superior products with lower operational risk, which brings double benefits. As I have emphasised, there are many areas in which sovereign capability is absolutely vital, and cannot be prejudiced—for example, in cryptography.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Douglas Carswell and Peter Luff(14 years, 4 months ago)
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Mr Douglas Carswell (Clacton) (Con)
17. How many defence procurement contracts have been frozen since his appointment.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Peter Luff)
Out of the 57 equipment-related projects that were subject to re-approval as part of the exercise announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 17 May, two projects—the search and rescue helicopter project, and the procurement of long-lead items for the successor deterrent—have been suspended pending the outcome of urgent ongoing reviews. However, all projects, including those that have been re-approved, are being considered as part of the strategic defence and security review.
Mr Carswell
Does my hon. Friend believe that it is in the best interests of our armed forces that senior officials involved in preparing MOD contracts are regularly recruited to work for the contractor and lobby Government on its behalf?
Peter Luff
Like my hon. Friend, I have severe doubts about that particular practice, and I can assure him that I am watching it very carefully.