Engagements

Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Prime Minister – in the House of Commons at 11:30 am on 15 July 2009.

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Photo of David Cameron David Cameron Leader of HM Official Opposition, Leader of the Conservative Party 11:30, 15 July 2009

We must be frank about the difficulties and dangers in Afghanistan, and one of the difficulties is a shortage of helicopters.

Let me take each of the Prime Minister's arguments in turn. He talks of a 60 per cent. increase in the number of helicopters. That is in comparison with the position three years ago, when we had half as many troops. There has not been a proportional increase in the number of helicopters. Even the 84 per cent. increase in capability relates to helicopter hours. Clearly one helicopter can be in only one place at one time. If we want to move more troops around the battlefield more quickly, we will need more helicopters.

Let us take the argument about Nick Richardson. Of course I listen with respect to the official spokesman of the Army, but I think that the Prime Minister should also listen to someone like Stuart Tootal, who commanded 3 Para and who has said, for instance,

"In Afghanistan in 2006 repeated demands for more helicopters fell on deaf ears."

He should also listen to Lord Guthrie- [Interruption.] I do not know why Labour Members do not want to listen to what was said by the former Chief of the Defence Staff. He said this:

"of course they need more helicopters. If there had been more, it is... likely that fewer soldiers would have been killed by roadside bombs".

Those are important points, and we should listen to them.

Let me ask the Prime Minister this. Is not the reason we do not have enough helicopters that we did not plan to have enough? When the Prime Minister looks back to 2004 and his decision to reduce the helicopter budget by £1.4 billion, does he remember that the National Audit Office said in that year:

"There is a considerable deficit in the availability of helicopter lift"?

Does he now recognise that that decision was a bad mistake?