Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Greg Smith and Luke Pollard

Monday 2nd February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)]

T10. Instead of constantly pushing back the closure date for RAF Halton in an era where we need to increase defence capability, will the Minister commit to keeping it open for the long term?

[Luke Pollard]

The hon. Gentleman will know that we inherited a base closure programme from the Conservative Government, with announcements of closures right across the country. We are looking carefully at the bases we have, at how we can use them for military needs, and, where we can dispose of them, at how we can ensure that we build houses for our armed forces and veterans on that land.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Greg Smith and Luke Pollard

Monday 15th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Luke Pollard]

I thank my hon. Friend for her interest in this issue. We are moving towards an always-on munitions strategy, and we have allocated £1.5 billion to create six new energetics munitions factories. The first will start construction next year. I am happy to meet her to further discuss the potential options in Scotland.

[Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)]

T5. Given that Germany has lifted its partial arms embargo on Israel, why do the UK Government persist with restrictions on defence export licences to our ally?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Greg Smith and Luke Pollard

Monday 30th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)]

11. What estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of the UK-Mauritius agreement concerning the Chagos archipelago, including Diego Garcia.

[The Minister for the Armed Forces (Luke Pollard)]

As the Defence Secretary has said, the cost of the agreement represents less than 0.2% of the annual MOD budget. This has secured unrestricted access to and use of the base on Diego Garcia, control over movement of all persons and good on the base, and control of all communications and electronic systems. It is a good deal.

[Greg Smith]

I do not know that I agree with the Minister that this is a good deal, although I am curious about the £30 billion. Does it count towards the new NATO target of 3.5%, or the additional 1.5% on top of that? As we have to inform the Mauritian Government before we do anything particularly useful from that base, should that cost actually be counted in the defence numbers at all?

[Luke Pollard]

Let me squash the hon. Gentleman’s last comment, which is wrong: we do not have to inform Mauritius before taking any military action. Under the treaty, we have to provide notification after the event. I have explained this 13 times in written answers to Members on the Conservative Front Bench, but I am afraid that they still do not get it. That underlines why they could not do a deal after 11 rounds of negotiation, whereas this Government did it after two rounds, securing the future of that vital base for UK and US operations.