"My Lords, I am most grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Ricketts, for initiating this debate on the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as it emphasises to us the debt that we owe to the gallant men and women of our Armed Forces for keeping us safe from such …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Dean, whose wise words on defence are always worth paying attention to. I thank her for her chairmanship of the group to which she referred, from which we all benefit. I also pay compliments to the noble …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, I declare my interest as chairman of General Dynamics UK. Many years ago now, I was given the task of unscrambling the defence industrial policy, which was centred on so-called national champions. This policy resulted in significant cost overruns and delay in delivery of equipment badly needed by …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, the Minister started his remarks by saying that those of us in this House should have little to worry about. I have to say, from personal experience of having an account in France to look after the small needs of the home that I own there, that one …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, I can claim to have spent quite a lot of time working on this particular issue, having held the post of Chief of Defence Procurement for six years. The noble Lord, Lord Robertson, was kind enough to pay tribute to some of the work I did but said …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, I, too, am most grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Hennessy, for his initiative in arranging this debate and I am happy to add to his already mammoth score. There have been quite a number of claims recently—sometimes from Ministers—that civil servants in government departments have not properly …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, I welcome this opportunity to comment on the progress of defence reform in the Ministry of Defence. When the former Defence Secretary, Dr Liam Fox, took office, he asked me to chair a steering group to monitor the progress of that reform. Your Lordships may recall that at …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what factors they take into account when making sure that the United Kingdom maintains its competitiveness...." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech
"My Lords, I am very glad to introduce this short debate this afternoon, not least because it will mark the maiden speech of the noble Lord, Lord Sassoon, who is now Commercial Secretary to the Treasury. The issue of competitiveness has particular resonance for me since I served in two …..." Lord Levene of Portsoken - View Speech