Queen’s Speech

Lord Astor of Hever Excerpts

Thursday 17th May 2012 Lords Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Astor of Hever)]

My Lords, it gives me great pleasure to close this debate on Her Majesty’s gracious Speech. The many issues raised today are a powerful reminder of the dangerous and uncertain world that we live in, as my noble friend Lord King pointed out. We are lucky to have men and women of calibre and commitment across the FCO, DfID, MoD and the agencies working tirelessly on our behalf. It is worth remembering that many of them are working in difficult and sometimes dangerous environments. We are grateful to and proud of them.

I pay tribute in particular to our Armed Forces. We ask a lot of them and they always deliver. Their professionalism and courage are inspirational, and we owe them and their families a tremendous debt of gratitude. It is a job which often carries many risks, as we know from our current operations in Afghanistan.

Earlier in the debate my noble friend Lord Howell said that we have a foreign policy with two clear aims—to respond to urgent challenges and crises in ways that promote Britain’s national interest and our democratic values, including human rights, poverty reduction and conflict prevention; and to equip our country to be a safe, prosperous and influential nation in the long term. We will continue to honour our commitment to the world’s poorest people, and we will enshrine that historic commitment in legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Tackling poverty is not only the right thing to do but is in the interests of Britain’s own security. If we do not invest in countries before they become broken, we end up paying the price in terms of terrorism, crime, mass migration and piracy. That is why the Secretary of State for International Development has a seat on the National Security Council and why the Government’s Building Stability Overseas Strategy recognises the crucial interplay between defence, diplomacy and development.

It is the role of defence to support this effort as we look to the future. Indeed, defence diplomacy is now a central pillar of our defence effort, and is important particularly when it comes to maintaining support for operations as well as upstream conflict prevention. Defence diplomacy is also an important part of my ministerial portfolio, in particular my membership of the cross-Whitehall Gulf Initiative ministerial team, led by the FCO. I am grateful to those noble Lords from all sides of the House who have given me the benefit of their advice and knowledge of this region which is of such strategic importance to this country.

Defence has a clear mission: to protect this country, project power and provide the ultimate guarantee of its security, as well as helping to protect our interests abroad. For the first time in decades, we have a balanced defence budget. We can now get on with the important job of transforming defence and building the Armed Forces of the future. We are, and expect to continue to be, in the top four military spenders in the world. Our intent for Future Force 2020 is clear: the development of versatile, agile and battle-winning Armed Forces supported by a professional Ministry of Defence, with people ready to lead, accept responsibility and spend wisely. We need the right equipment, support and force structures to deliver military success on operations whether that be overseas or here at home, where we are always in readiness to support civil contingency work, as demonstrated by our recent preparations in training military personnel to replace striking fuel tanker drivers. Of course, this summer our Armed Forces will support the security effort for the Olympic Games. That is a sizeable undertaking, involving around 13,500 service personnel at the height of the Games.

Our main effort will remain focused on Afghanistan. We are now in the final phases of our military mission there. International forces are gradually handing over security responsibility to the Afghans, who will have full responsibility in all provinces by the end of 2014. The last of the three districts in the UK’s area of operations, Nahr-e Saraj, has now entered the transition process. This is testament to the increasing capability of the Afghan national security forces and to the impressive work of the British and allied troops who have trained and partnered them. Of course, Nahr-e Saraj remains a challenging area and the ANSF, supported by us and our international partners, will continue to face difficult and challenging days ahead. Yet we should not allow that to cloud the real and tangible progress that has been made and which will now continue under an Afghan security lead. The UK will be out of a combat role by 2014, but we will continue to support Afghanistan. We will provide £70 million a year to help support ongoing development of the Afghan national security forces. We will also take the lead in the setting up and running of the Afghan national army officer academy. As the Prime Minister has stated, our goal will be to leave,

“Afghanistan looking after its own security, not being a haven for terror, without the involvement of foreign troops”.

I will do my best to answer all the specific questions and issues raised during the debate, but I am in no doubt that I will run out of time. I will undertake to write to all noble Lords who asked me questions.

The noble Lord, Lord Wood, seemed gloriously unaware of what we are doing in NATO, the Commonwealth, the United Nations and rows of other international bodies. I will try to answer his questions. The first was whether the eurozone should survive or break up. As the Chancellor said, resolving the eurozone crisis would be the single biggest boost that the British economy could get this year. It is in our national interest that there is a coherent, comprehensive and lasting solution. The noble Lord also asked about Palestine and the UN. We see negotiations as the best way of achieving the two-state solution. We reserve the right to recognise the Palestinian state bilaterally, at the moment of our choosing and when it can best help bring about peace.

The noble Lord asked if the Government are seeking a ban on protection and indemnity insurance in relation to Iran. We are committed to the dual-track approach of engagement and increasing the pressure on Iran through far-reaching sanctions. We strongly support the unprecedented package of EU Iran sanctions that were agreed earlier this year. The EU is taking time to review aspects of the protection and indemnity insurance ban before 1 July to ensure that the pressure on Iran is maximised while avoiding any undesired impact elsewhere. We are in discussion with several other EU member states on this issue. On our agenda for the P5+1 talks in Baghdad on 23 May, which we look forward to, we now need agreement on urgent, practical steps to build confidence that Iran will implement its international obligations and does not intend to build a nuclear weapon.

What are our priorities for the G8 and G20? We take over the presidency of the G8 on 1 January next year. We will say more about the priorities for our presidency nearer the time. The British Government are working closely with G20 partners to deliver a meaningful and successful summit in Los Cabos in June. It is fundamental that the G20 takes the necessary actions to address ongoing risks to the global economic recovery and secures strong, sustainable and balanced growth which supports employment and job creation.

The noble Lord, Lord Gilbert, mentioned the C17. In my department, we agree 100% with him. We have just ordered an extra C17 which, from memory, is coming in July. It is a wonderful aircraft and I will take back with me the noble Lord’s suggestion about approaching Commonwealth countries.

My noble friend Lady Falkner asked about Syria and whether we had considered withdrawing the passport of the President’s wife. She raises a valid point, and I will convey her concerns to my Home Office colleagues, who have responsibility in this matter. The noble Lord, Lord Cameron, asked about support for African countries. Many of DfID’s 18 country programmes in Africa have a strong focus on supporting rural and small-scale agriculture. We are co-chairs and strong supporters of the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund governing council. We gave it £44 million between 2008 and 2011, which has helped about 1 million rural farmers in Africa.

The right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Wakefield asked about the viability of a lasting peace in Afghanistan. We encourage all parties to take forward reconciliation, a process that must be Afghan-led. That includes members of the Taliban who are prepared to renounce violence, break ties with al-Qaeda and respect the Afghan constitution. He also asked about the covenant and how the challenge of looking after families and injured personnel will be met after combat operations in Afghanistan cease. Our commitment, in particular to those injured on operations, is for long-term operations. Just as their difficulties will not disappear at the end of 2014, neither will our support.

The right reverend Prelate also asked, if unrest in the Middle East persists, what contingency do we have to respond? We have a range of contingency plans for the Middle East and maintain forces at readiness to deal with and respond to contingencies, depending on the circumstances. I am sure that colleagues would not want me to go into too much detail on that issue.

My noble friend Lord Chidgey asked: what are the Government doing about international corruption in the DRC and Zimbabwe? We believe that a combination of voluntary approaches by business and existing legal and regulatory methods will provide sufficient incentives to achieve greater transparency. However, we are interested to see how the United States Government will implement their new legislation on conflict minerals, and are monitoring it very closely. My noble friend was also concerned that poor people are not benefiting from mineral wealth in their countries. Her Majesty’s Government are a strong supporter of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, which enables people to hold their Governments to account for mineral revenue. We are also working with countries to strengthen their public financial management systems and the capacity of their tax departments to stop tax avoidance.

The noble and gallant Lord, Lord Stirrup, asked: has there been international agreement on long-term financing for Afghanistan? The continued support of the international community for Afghanistan after 2014 is vital for our shared national and international security. At the Bonn conference last December, the international community reiterated its long-term commitment to Afghanistan. The UK announced in April that we would provide £70 million per year, as I mentioned, and international partners have announced significant contributions in the build-up to the NATO Chicago summit this weekend. However, our support to Afghanistan will be more widely focused than on security elements alone. We look forward to the Tokyo conference in July, where the international community will deliver long-term commitments for development assistance.

My noble friend Lord Teverson and several other noble Lords asked about South Sudan and the Sudan crisis. My noble friend was particularly interested in China’s involvement in discussions. It is significant that the UN Security Council resolution was unanimously supported by all members, including China.

My noble friend also asked what the commitment is of the new French Government to the UK-French treaty. We are pleased that initial contacts with the new French Government suggest that they remain committed to the co-operation which we agreed in 2010.

The noble and gallant Lord, Lord Craig, asked about the 1% increase in defence spending. That increase in spending on equipment and equipment support in the period beyond the spending review brought over £3 billion of new money into defence over the 10-year planning period. The increase applies only to equipment and equipment support. In balancing the programme, we have assumed that the non-equipment programme will increase in line with inflation. An exact defence budget for the years beyond 2014-15 will be set during the next spending review.

The noble and gallant Lord also asked what the next stages are in the coalition’s defence thinking. The SDSR concluded that we should assume an adaptable strategic posture, which means that we will remain ready to use armed force where necessary to protect our national interests. However, we will be more selective in its use and focus our Armed Forces more on tackling risks before they escalate and on exerting UK influence as part of a better, co-ordinated overall national security response. The SDSR also made it clear that we must give priority over the next decade to recovering capabilities damaged or reduced as a result of overstretch. This takes time and investment but is needed to rebuild the strength and restore the capability of our Armed Forces to react effectively to new demands.

The noble and gallant Lord asked about Afghan gifting. We are currently examining options for the future of equipment procured as urgent operational requirements for Afghanistan, but no decisions have yet been made and we will not dispose of equipment that is required as part of the future contingent capability.

Finally, the noble and gallant Lord asked about the MRA4. Following the removal of the Nimrod from service, the department has conducted a number of studies into the resulting capability implications but no decision has been made on whether a long-term manned or unmanned replacement for the marine patrol aircraft is required.

The noble Baroness, Lady Kinnock, the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Lichfield and the noble Earl, Lord Sandwich, mentioned the 0.7% commitment and the timing of legislation. We will continue to honour our commitment. That is why we will not only enshrine that historic commitment in law—the Bill is already prepared—but be the first G8 country to deliver.

The noble Earl also asked about the post-MDG framework. We are delighted that the Prime Minister has been asked to co-chair the Secretary-General’s high-level panel on a framework to replace MDGs, alongside the Presidents of Indonesia and Liberia. We will do all we can to support the UN process to secure global agreement on a successor framework that will help meet the needs of the world’s poorest people.

My noble friend Lord Luke asked a number of questions about the carriers and the JSF, which is an important issue. As a result of the recent decision to switch back to the stable variant of JSF, we will have two carriers capable of flying stable aircraft and thus the ability to deliver continuous carrier availability. As we set out in the SDSR, a final decision on the use of the second carrier will be taken as part of the SDSR in 2015. Overall, the Queen Elizabeth-class carrier costs will be subject to a detailed review and thorough scrutiny by the MoD approving authorities. Until this work has been undertaken, it is too early to comment on the revised cost of the programme. I think that my noble friend’s other questions were covered in the Statement that I made last week on the carriers.

My noble friend Lord Sharkey asked about Cyprus. Successive UK Governments have long been advocates of a comprehensive settlement. We are committed to assisting Cyprus in its preparation for the EU presidency.

The noble Lord, Lord Williamson, asked how useful the EEAS is. The Government see it as an important tool to support member states of the EU in making the best use of their collective weight in the world, in areas where we agree to act together. The real potential of the EEAS lies in its ability to mobilise the combined resources of the EU institutions and the member states. This is apparent in the Horn of Africa, where we are beginning to see an effective, comprehensive approach that brings together the EU’s diplomatic development and CSDP mission activities into one approach.

We must adapt to stay ahead, configure our capability to address tomorrow’s threats not yesterday’s, build more versatile and agile forces for the future and ensure that our people have what they need in this important endeavour—the defence of our nation in a changing world. I beg to move.

Motion agreed nemine dissentiente, and the Lord Chamberlain was ordered to present the Address to Her Majesty.