Support for Ukraine and Countering Threats from Russia

Nia Griffith Excerpts

Wednesday 2nd March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

I rise to voice my condemnation of Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and to give my full support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. I would also like to voice the support of the people of Llanelli, many, many of whom have been hugely generous, offering accommodation for Ukrainian refugees, responding to an initiative by our Polish community to bring goods to send to Ukrainians arriving in eastern Poland and giving money, through an online facility kindly set up by Llanelli Rotary Club. I have also had lots of messages from constituents urging the Government to relax the visa rules and take a much more practical approach to enable and assist Ukrainian refugees to come here; they feel angry and embarrassed that the UK is not offering the welcome that other European countries are offering, with their permission for Ukrainians to stay for three years. I urge the Government to rethink their approach immediately and open our doors to Ukrainians.

It is understandable, when we see the horrific scenes on TV, to focus on the land, sea and air threats posed by Russia, but in the short time available I want to focus on the need for unity across the free world, and the very powerful threats posed to that united resolve by the use of cyber-attacks and information warfare. Make no mistake, Russia has very considerable expertise in those matters. There is nothing new about propaganda or information warfare, but technological advances and our increasing reliance on technology make it much easier, quicker and cheaper to customise messages ever more precisely, for ever more targeted audiences thousands of miles away.

No longer are we subjected to a billboard slogan merely four times a day or to the same TV advert aired a dozen times in an evening, but, every spare moment, as we idly thumb our phones, we are ready targets to be bombarded with internet messages. Moreover, this bombardment masquerades as our free choice, as we scroll and click, often oblivious to the subliminal messages that target us. Worryingly, some security experts argue that 62% of all web traffic is generated by bots. The potential for such “computational propaganda” to be used by state and non-state actors both overtly and covertly is enormous. It can be used to stir up social unrest and racial hatred and erode the will of the population to defend itself.

We have seen the use of hybrid tactics by Russia in Ukraine to influence not only different sections of the Ukrainian population and the Russian population back home, but opinion much more widely across the free world, which Russia has a very strong interest in. The very nature of this form of hybrid warfare is that it is difficult to attribute responsibility with certainty. Perpetrators may choose to claim responsibility, to create deliberate ambiguity, or to use technology to conceal their involvement completely, creating the impression of spontaneous, indigenous action. Furthermore, targeting and manipulating public opinion, even if systematic and attributable, cannot be prosecuted under international humanitarian law, which focuses on physical harm.

I appreciate the difficulties that Ministers have in speaking about these matters in public, but I simply urge the Government to make considerable investment in our capabilities in respect of information warfare and countering this type of attack, and ask that we urge our NATO allies to do likewise.

That brings me to unity, which is crucial to countering threats from Russia. It has been heartening to see such a unified initial response from our allies in NATO and, more broadly, from countries across the world, but, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Wentworth and Dearne (John Healey) said from the Dispatch Box, this will not be easy to maintain and we must constantly work at it. I urge the Government to make dialogue and strengthening relationships with our allies, both in NATO and beyond, an absolute priority and to give it the resources that it needs.

Oral Answers to Questions

Nia Griffith Excerpts

Monday 16th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Jeremy Quin]

The hon. Gentleman is right: we need the very best equipment for our armed forces. As he is probably aware, the Army has no fewer than nine key projects for equipment modernisation, totalling some £17 billion over the next 10 years, and around 130 smaller projects. He mentions two in particular. On Challenger 2, we are well advanced through the assessment phase and will take decisions on that at a future date. On Warrior, we are on to the demonstration phase, which is going well, and we will be taking decisions in the future.

[Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

The recent National Audit Office report on the Government’s defence equipment plan showed that there is a potential funding shortfall of £13 billion, which will no doubt affect Army equipment as well as Navy and RAF equipment. Given that this is now the third time that the NAO has deemed the plan unaffordable, when will the Minister get to grips with this funding crisis?

[Jeremy Quin]

We are getting to grips with it right now. We are grateful to the NAO for its work. I gently point out to the hon. Lady that the Department hit budget this year, last year and the year before. We constantly review budgets to make certain that the equipment plan is affordable. We have shrunk the gap significantly, and we had additional assistance from the Treasury last year. We will make certain that we are meeting the needs of the armed forces.

[Nia Griffith]

I thank the Minister for his answer, but we know that the Army has cancelled various anti-armour projects and reduced the number of tanks it will upgrade. There have also been recent reports suggesting that the Army is to face further cuts in the integrated review. Can the Minister guarantee that the review will not be yet another cost-cutting exercise, leaving our armed forces short of the equipment that we need to defend the country?

[Jeremy Quin]

The integrated review is under way; it is nowhere near to bringing itself to any conclusions yet. The review looks at the totality of our place in the world, as the hon. Lady recognises, and how we operate as a country across the broadest spectrum. It is not a review designed to cut costs. It is a review designed to ensure that we know what we are doing in the world and that that is effected through really effective equipment—that is the purpose of the integrated review, and we look forward to its response.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Minister for Defence Procurement (Jeremy Quin)]

My hon. Friend is right. Martin-Baker produces the ejector seats for our F-35s that fly off HMS Queen Elizabeth. Diary permitting, I would be delighted to join her.

[Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

This weekend there has been widespread concern about the Government’s communication strategy on the coronavirus pandemic, including a number of anonymous briefings to the media, such as one on the role of the Army. As well as providing more detail about Operation Broadshare, can the Secretary of State explain reports that the Government are working on the assumption that at least 20% of personnel will contract the virus? What arrangements are in place to mitigate any impact that that may have on operations?

[Mr Wallace]

The hon. Lady raises an important point about media stories, some of which are entirely fictional. There is no Operation Hades, contrary to one report. There are absolutely no plans to send military personnel to guard supermarkets. However, despite our trying to clarify that with the media, there is still an intention in some parts of the media to continue to write these stories; indeed, there is some suspicion about where some of these stories are developed.

Of course we have made all sorts of assumptions that reflect, first, infection rates in the general population and, secondly, the unique aspects of the armed forces’ working life. We will make sure that we look after our armed forces and continue operationally.

Oral Answers to Questions

Nia Griffith Excerpts

Monday 3rd February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

On the one hand, the Government have rightly been challenging China’s aggressive military actions in the seas around south-east Asia, yet on the other hand, despite the Secretary of State himself having reportedly branded China a “friend of no one”, the Government have granted Huawei significant access to the superhighways of our cyber and telecoms systems. Will the Secretary of State clarify exactly what his Government’s strategy in relation to China is?

[Mr Wallace]

The Government’s strategy towards China is that we treat it in a way that befits its actions but measure our response when China does things that we do not like. For example, we test freedom of navigation in the Pacific but also seek to listen to the experts when it comes to issues such as Huawei. That is why the Government made the choice last week to allow Huawei to have a limited amount of the 5G market. Our policy towards Huawei is to cap it, to ban it in other parts of the network, and to reduce over time our dependency on that company and others like it.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Wallace]

I assure my hon. Friend of the importance that we attach to this area, given the stress under which it puts members of the armed forces. This is the first time in my living memory that all the Front-Bench team served on operations and were members of the regular armed forces. That is why we feel it personally, as do the Government. We are determined to deal with this vexatious issue for our armed forces, which is why we will introduce measures in the next 100 days.

[Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

Our armed forces were due to have access to Galileo’s encrypted system when it becomes fully operational in 2026, but now we have left the EU, that will not be the case. Can the Secretary of State tell the House when the UK’s own global navigation satellite system will be fully up and running? Given that the first satellites may only be launched by 2025, and the system will not be operational until 2030, what will fill the gap in capabilities that this presents?

[Mr Wallace]

The hon. Lady will be aware that all our systems currently run under GPS—the global positioning system—and it is not necessary for us to operate under any other system. This is about resilience and whether we need an alternative system. What happens in our negotiations with Europe between now and the end of the year will obviously be a matter for the negotiators, but I am confident that we will continue to work alongside the United States on GPS or, indeed, that we will provide further details to the House on what we plan to increase resilience.

[Nia Griffith]

The Government have actually said that the cost of any system could be up to £5 billion. If the plan is to have this UK option, what assurance has the Secretary of State received that the money will not have to come out of the existing defence budget, which is already under strain, leading to more cuts in other areas?

[Mr Wallace]

As I said in my first answer, we are currently dependent on using GPS with the United States. We will keep any alternatives that we need under review. I will of course make representations to the Treasury, as will the wider parts of Government that also rely on satellite navigation—it is not just Defence—to make sure that, if any funding is required, that is taken from across Government or indeed from the Treasury.