NATO Summit

Ed Davey Excerpts

Thursday 13th July 2023 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I agree wholeheartedly with my right hon. Friend that this House and the entire country can and should be proud of the leadership we have shown on Ukraine. He is right that we need to rebuild the stockpiles we have provided. That is why, in the Budget, £5 billion extra funding was provided for the armed forces, with a large chunk of that going particularly to rebuild those organs and those stockpiles, coming on top of the half a billion that was provided in the autumn statement. Just this week, for example, we announced a new contract with BAE to provide critical 155 mm rounds, which, as he will be familiar with, are absolutely mission-critical. Because we now have the funding to provide long-term contracts, we can increase defence production. That is good for our security, it is good for the security of our allies and, crucially, it also creates jobs, particularly in the north of England.

[Ed Davey (Kingston and Surbiton) (LD)]

I welcome the Prime Minister’s update and our support for Ukraine, and I strongly agree that we need to encourage our NATO allies to meet their commitments in full. How is he encouraging that goal when he is overseeing a cut to the British Army of 10,000 troops? Is not one of the key lessons from Russia’s attack on Ukraine that a sizeable standing army remains crucial to the defence and security of our country and NATO allies, and will he listen to voices across this House calling for a reversal to cuts in Army numbers?

[The Prime Minister]

The right hon. Gentleman talks about defence spending, and it is clear that not only have we met the 2% target, but we were one of the first to do so, and we have done so for over a decade. It is good that others are now catching up, and our leadership on this issue is unquestionable. How that money is spent is ultimately a question for our military chiefs, to ensure that we have the optimal mix of capabilities to protect ourselves against the threats we face. I will not pre-empt the defence Command Paper, other than to say that, when it comes to our armed forces, what is important is not just the quantum in terms of the Army, but how lethal they are, how deployable and how agile. That has been a particular focus of attention from the Chief of the General Staff, and it is a plan that we are putting in place. I would maybe draw slightly different lessons from the right hon. Gentleman’s on the conflict that Ukraine is currently experiencing. The capabilities that we have brought to bear have been in a range of areas, all of which have received extra investment. Again, those will be questions for the defence Command Paper, which he will not have to wait very long to see.