"My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Viscount, Lord Stansgate. I offer my congratulations to Emily and James, and I look forward very much to the engagement party next month—it will be fun. Equally, I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Carberry of Muswell Hill, on her excellent …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"I just want to add a bit of clarity to our conversation about regulars, veterans and reserves, and what we imagine reserves to be. As Major-General Lancaster, I am head of the part-time volunteer reserve and subject to military law when wearing a uniform. Where we get confused is with …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"My Lords, I remind your Lordships’ House of my interest as a member of the Army Board. I welcome the Government’s commitment to spending £3 billion in military aid until 2030, but my plea is that we are smart in how we spend it: first, that we ensure that we …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"My Lords, I declare my interest as a member of the Army Board. I welcome the rise to 2.5%; it goes some way to delivering the means that the noble Lord, Lord Robertson, needs to balance the ends and ways in the SDR. However, the aspiration to go to 3% …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"My Lords, to date, the UK has given £7.8 billion-worth of military assistance to Ukraine and that has been paid for from the Treasury reserve. Under this agreement, we commit to give a further £3 billion per year until 2030. Can the Minister say whether that will continue to be …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"With your Lordships’ indulgence, I will ask one more question since we have lots of time. I want to pick up on a point that the Minister made in her initial response about the status of refugees in the United Kingdom. I declare an interest in that my wife, Caroline …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"My Lords, I commend the Minister, who has quickly established himself as a champion for defence within the department. I know that he is determined to deliver 2.5%, but it comes down to money. Does he accept the generally held view that 2.5% is insufficient to deliver a balanced defence …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"My Lords, I was the last Minister to visit Diego Garcia. It is depressing to learn, in Answers to Parliamentary Questions, that no Minister intends to visit in future—that is really not a good sign. In the sovereign base areas in Cyprus, we have a working example of ceding sovereign …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech
"The Minister has outlined some of the challenges that we face but there is a bigger issue here. Under Article 3 of our NATO treaty, we have an obligation to deliver national resilience in the UK. It is not just about the air threat—it is about guarding critical national infrastructure, …..." Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton - View Speech