Afghanistan: Quarterly Statement

Lord Dannatt Excerpts

Wednesday 14th May 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Northover]

I hear what the noble Lord says. I thank him for the tributes he has paid. He will know full well the contribution that our service men and women are making. I do not doubt that the standards of our troops are second to none. It is clearly vital that our troops, like all other troops, adhere to international law in this regard because we are trying to establish respect for the rule of law in Afghanistan. Clearly, if one or two let anybody down then that can let the whole group down. I am well aware that the troops themselves wish that every single member of their group adheres to the high standards to which they themselves adhere.

[Lord Dannatt (CB)]

My Lords—

[Lord Judd (Lab)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord speaks from a lot of experience, and he is absolutely right that we need to build security and peace in order to secure what has been achieved thus far. He is also absolutely right to pay tribute to the courage of the women who have been ensuring that women and girls have the kind of rights that we take for granted.

We support the Ministry of Interior Affairs and the police in trying to ensure that we provide the kind of security that the noble Lord wishes to see there. I also point out that, in other areas, half of all pregnant women, for example, now receive ante-natal care, compared with 16% in 2003. There have been many areas in which people’s lives have been transformed. We need to make sure that that continues to move forward.

[Lord Dannatt]

My Lords, I am very conscious that what I am about to say may not make me universally popular in your Lordships’ House. I was in command of the Army from 2006 to 2009. It will not have escaped the notice of noble Lords that this Chamber was packed to the gunnels at the start of Question Time today for discussion of the Thames tideway tunnel and other important matters. However, when the Minister began to draw attention to those who had fallen, noble Lords streamed out of this House in a way that was most unfortunate, given that six of our comrades had lost their lives. Can the Minister speak with the Leader of the House and other members of the usual channels so that if a tribute is to be paid to those who have fallen in the interests of our nation, noble Lords will be informed of that and will stay in their places? On a military base no one moves during the Last Post. In your Lordships’ House, I respectfully suggest that no one moves while a tribute is being paid to the fallen. The fallen have done their best to give the Afghans the opportunity of a better life in the future. We have done our best; it is now over to the Afghans to make the best of what we have given them.

[Baroness Northover]

Yes; I have noted what the noble Lord has said. It was not known until today that this Statement would be repeated in the Lords. The fact that I am speaking on behalf of DfID but answering on behalf of the MoD and the FCO may have made people think that the Statement would be DfID-focused. My noble friend who is the Minister for the MoD usually gives those names, and gave them when he last answered a Question. Therefore I left a gap as noble Lords began to leave. I hoped that they would hear what I was saying, but I think that some of them did not realise. I saw noble Lords pause and stop, and when they heard what I was saying they responded. However, the noble Lord is absolutely right.