Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 25th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[James Heappey]

I am unable to answer my right hon. Friend’s specific question, but he will be heartened to hear that as a consequence of all that is going on in the world, and the geopolitical uncertainty that requires us to use our armed forces so extensively, in recent months we have enjoyed record expressions of interest in joining His Majesty’s armed forces. Obviously, we need to make sure that the time between expressing an interest and starting training is as short as possible; all colleagues on the Front Bench perceive the need for that.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

6. What steps his Department is taking to support defence jobs.

[Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con)]

20. What steps his Department is taking to support defence jobs.

[The Minister for Defence Procurement (James Cartlidge)]

The most recent estimate shows that the Ministry of Defence supports about 209,000 jobs in industries across the UK. I am pleased to say that this figure will be boosted further by the confirmation last week that BAE Systems will partner with a firm in Australia to build its nuclear-powered submarines. That will support 7,000 additional British jobs across the programme’s lifetime.

[Selaine Saxby]

Would my hon. Friend agree that MOD procurement from small British companies in rural areas such as North Devon can significantly increase defence-related jobs there, and enhance the local economy, especially when those jobs are in high-wage research and development and manufacturing industries? Will he commit to ensuring that the additional high-skilled jobs and economic benefits resulting from contracts are considered in future procurement decisions?

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 20th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Patricia Gibson (North Ayrshire and Arran) (SNP)]

5. What steps he is taking to support veterans.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

7. What steps his Department is taking to support veterans.

[The Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families (Dr Andrew Murrison)]

The Ministry of Defence delivers a range of services to veterans and their families, including the administration and payment of armed forces pensions and compensation, and tailored advice and assistance through the Veterans Welfare Service, Defence Transition Services and integrated personal commissioning for veterans.

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[Dr Murrison]

Of course the MOD works with the DWP on a range of issues. Compensation is set in the full knowledge of how it will be dealt with under the benefits system in the UK. By most measures, the armed forces compensation scheme and the war pension scheme are felt to be sound and appropriate for awarding significant amounts of money to those who have served our country and who, unfortunately, have been disadvantaged as a result.

[Selaine Saxby]

Will my right hon. Friend join me in thanking The Veterans Charity in North Devon for their Poppies to Paddington operation, which saw 231 wreaths from the Great Western Railway region reach Paddington for Remembrance Day, and for their incredible work to help support our wonderful veterans across the UK?

[Dr Murrison]

I absolutely will, and I add my congratulations to my hon. Friend’s in thanking The Veterans Charity in North Devon. I also congratulate her on the extraordinary support she gives to our veterans in her constituency and elsewhere, particularly as we come out of the season of remembrance, which I know you were heavily involved with too, Mr Speaker. It is important to reflect on those who give so much in the service of our country.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 11th September 2023 Commons Chamber

[James Cartlidge]

At the moment, we are not releasing specific details because the work is ongoing, but I assure him and the House on two points. First, the Defence Infrastructure Organisation has been undertaking a huge amount of work—in fact, there has been work on RAAC in the MOD context since 2019. Most importantly, we are not aware of any impact from RAAC on service family accommodation.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

T9. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is vital that we back British military manufacturers? What steps is he taking to speed up delayed procurement decisions? Will he visit North Devon to meet some of the innovative suppliers manufacturing here in the UK?

[James Cartlidge]

It is good news on both fronts for my hon. Friend. First, yes, a lot of work is going on to improve the speed of procurement. I am also pleased to confirm that I have already a visit planned to her part of the world in a couple of weeks. I will liaise with her office about meeting those companies.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 26th June 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)]

6. What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the armed forces have the skills required for the future.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

13. What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the armed forces have the skills required for the future.

[The Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families (Dr Andrew Murrison)]

Last week, the Ministry of Defence published the Haythornthwaite review of armed forces incentivisation. Rick Haythornthwaite and his team have done an absolutely brilliant job. The MOD is now working out how to implement the recommendations, but I think it true to say that Haythornthwaite addresses our pressing need to build a firm foundation for an increasingly skills-based future in which the MOD will have to compete extremely hard if it is to continue to recruit and retain the very best.

[Dr Murrison]

We are very proud of the wide-ranging make-up of our armed forces, which includes many neurodiverse people. The Haythornthwaite review recognises that tomorrow’s defence will be very different from today’s, and that its people will be as well. I agree with the thrust of my hon. Friend’s perceptive question, and anticipate that the skills and attributes that we will need in the future will mean our casting the net much more widely than before.

[Selaine Saxby]

In North Devon, our two military bases, Chivenor and Arromanches, have units specialising in logistics, engineering and unmanned marine technologies. What steps is my right hon. Friend taking to encourage more budding young engineers to fulfil their technical education and work prospects in our armed forces?

[Dr Murrison]

The Ministry of Defence is deeply committed to supporting future engineers both inside and outside the armed forces, and is one of the largest deliverers of UK apprenticeships: we have 22,000 personnel on 100 different apprenticeships at any one time. Furthermore, the Haythornthwaite review and the pan-defence skills framework will take the skilling of our defence people to the next level.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 30th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

Can the Minister confirm that UK operational sovereignty will be a factor in increment 1A of the maritime electronic warfare programme? Will he meet me to discuss that?

[The Minister for Defence Procurement (Alex Chalk)]

I will write to my hon. Friend on that important question.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 12th December 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Wallace]

First, I do not accept the hon. Gentleman’s figures. Secondly, between now and next year’s Budget, I have been given enough to insulate us from the effects of inflation, and we can continue within our current comprehensive spending review envelope. We can discuss the next one when it comes up.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

T5. Does my right hon. Friend agree that our different cadet groups do great work in inspiring the next generation? Will he join me in congratulating PO Mack on his work with the excellent Ilfracombe sea cadets?

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 28th March 2022 Commons Chamber

[James Heappey]

I certainly can assure my hon. Friend that that is the case. As I said in response to an earlier question, we are looking a week, two weeks, two months and three months ahead in order to give the Ukrainians strategic depth and in order to bring to bear our technological and industrial advantages and to provide them with the kit we think they will need, not just in the next few days but in three months’ time, so that they can continue to ensure that President Putin fails in his endeavours in Ukraine.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

17. Whether his Department is taking steps to procure British equipment to support Ukraine’s military.

[The Minister for Defence Procurement (Jeremy Quin)]

I emphasise that decisions on equipment are in response to requests from Ukraine, and we consider how best to address Ukraine’s needs. The anti-tank weapons provided to the Ukrainian armed forces thus far have been taken from existing UK stocks, to ensure speed of delivery. The MOD continues to pursue options to meet Ukrainian requirements rapidly, including through UK industry and by actively convening our global partners.

[Selaine Saxby]

I have been contacted by manufacturers of military hardware in North Devon that work with the MOD and can rapidly move to provide items such as helmets and body armour. Are there any plans for a streamlined emergency procurement process to help speed this up?

[Jeremy Quin]

I emphasise that these are Ukrainian decisions. I urge UK companies to contact the Ukrainian embassy, as well as using other routes. In parallel, the Department for International Trade is meeting defence-ready trade associations such as ADS and Make UK on a weekly basis to rapidly consider industry offers to Ukraine and how they can be assisted. UK manufacturers of military hardware may also wish to forward offers to their trade association.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 15th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[James Heappey]

The hon. Gentleman might want to check the date on which the Foreign Office advice to leave Afghanistan was changed to be that, because it was actually very much aligned with the French timeline that he mentioned. From that moment onwards, the resettlement scheme for moving MOD-entitled civilian contractors out of the country had commenced. It is a source of regret, I think, for many who were eligible for the scheme that they chose not to leave at the first opportunity and they waited, but the MOD was not in a position forcibly to remove people from the country. The scheme was open; we were bringing people back. From memory, I think we removed about 1,500 people before Kabul fell. I wish that more had taken the opportunity to leave when the Foreign Office advice was changed, but the Foreign Office advice was changed in a timely way and the MOD capacity to move people was in place from the spring.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

9. What recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of support available for veterans throughout the UK.

[The Minister for Defence People and Veterans (Leo Docherty)]

The Government are committed to delivering a gold standard of care for our veterans. We have made huge progress in recent years, with tangible benefits such as the veterans railcard, the bespoke mental health care pathway, tax breaks for those employing veterans and guaranteed job interviews for veterans applying to join the civil service. But there is more to do, which is why we are putting the armed forces covenant into law and why I will be announcing the veterans strategy next month.

[Selaine Saxby]

The Veterans Charity, which is based in North Devon, helps hundreds of veterans across the UK each year, and would like to thank the MOD for supporting its routes of remembrance event, which involved many veterans and service personnel around the nation. The Veterans Charity received many referrals from the excellent Op Courage teams. Will the Minister clarify what plans there are for more comprehensive coverage from this service across North Devon and the south-west, where there are many veterans living in remote areas who need and deserve greater mental health support?

[Leo Docherty]

I am pleased to put on record my thanks to the Veterans Charity for its amazing work. I was pleased to contribute to the routes of remembrance event and to dispatch a wreath from Aldershot along with the mayor and garrison commander. We are rightly increasing the budget for Op Courage to more than £20 million this year. An important component of that healthcare is the accreditation of local GPs, so I hope that my hon. Friend is exploring that prospect in North Devon.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 24th May 2021 Commons Chamber

[Leo Docherty]

I am pleased to confirm that that support is available, and it is only right that it should be. Who could resist an invitation to Teesside? I would be delighted to visit the Don War Memorial Museum with my hon. Friend, and to learn about the magnificent military heritage of which Teesside can be rightly proud.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the armed forces are supported by world-class technological capabilities.

[Aaron Bell (Newcastle-under-Lyme) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the armed forces are supported by world-class technological capabilities.

[The Minister for Defence Procurement (Jeremy Quin)]

To ensure that our armed forces are able to meet current and future threats, we are investing over £6.6 billion in defence research and development over the next four years. Defence will accelerate the use of the next generation technologies through focused investment on demonstrators and early prototypes, aggressively pursuing game-changing capabilities at pace. This includes areas such as directed energy and hypersonic weapons, forms of drones, artificial intelligence and automation.

[Selaine Saxby]

Does my hon. Friend agree that it is vital that our British troops have the best equipment in the world, that when that is produced here in Britain by small manufacturers like CQC in my constituency, the procurement process should be fair and transparent, and that where possible we should be buying British and supporting British jobs in places like Barnstaple?

[Jeremy Quin]

I absolutely agree that we need the best equipment. My hon. Friend has been a great advocate for CQC in her constituency. I am delighted that it recently secured an order for 27,000 operational travel bags for the British Army. Small and medium-sized enterprises perform an invaluable role in supporting defence and now account for over 21% of expenditure. I will publish a revised SME action plan later this year.

Oral Answers to Questions

Selaine Saxby Excerpts

Monday 2nd November 2020 Commons Chamber

[Chris Clarkson (Heywood and Middleton) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support veterans.

[Selaine Saxby (North Devon) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support veterans.

[The Minister for Defence People and Veterans (Johnny Mercer)]

The Ministry of Defence and the Office for Veterans’ Affairs are working together with colleagues across Government to improve access to social housing, employment and healthcare, as well as digitising the Veterans UK services. Defence Transition Services is delivering tailored support to service leavers and their families. The Government have delivered a veterans’ railcard and have announced a guaranteed interview scheme in the civil service and a national insurance holiday for veterans’ employers.

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[Johnny Mercer]

I am happy to reiterate again the Government’s position that those who served on Op Banner will be entitled to equal treatment from the protections that we are bringing forward on Third Reading of the overseas operations Bill tomorrow. I am clear that this is the first Government who are actually dealing with this very knotty and difficult issue. Northern Ireland veterans can be confident that we will not forget them—we will not leave them behind.

[Selaine Saxby [V]]

Will my hon. Friend join me in congratulating the Veterans Charity, which ran a Halloween-themed charity car wash in my North Devon constituency and raised almost £500 this weekend? Will he also join me in recognising the vital co-operation between Government and the charity sector, with the Veterans Charity having helped 650 veterans this year alone?

[Johnny Mercer]

I pay tribute to all the groups up and down this country who work tirelessly every day to improve the lot of our veterans, particularly the ones in my hon. Friends’ constituencies. There is a shift in the provision of veterans’ services in this country towards more of a balance between the third sector and statutory provision, but we will always require a blend of the two, and I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for her lobbying for this cause.