Results 1-20 of 3,075 for (in the 'Commons debates' OR in the 'Westminster Hall debates' OR in the 'Lords debates' OR in the 'Northern Ireland Assembly debates') speaker:Baroness Taylor of Bolton

Queen's Speech — Debate (2nd Day) (19 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, this has indeed been a very well-informed and wide-ranging debate. I will endeavour to cover as many topics as possible, but it may be impossible to deal with every item that has been raised. I am sure that the House will understand that I want to spend much of my time talking about Afghanistan, as the noble Lord did. I am afraid that, as too often on these occasions, I must start...

Queen's Speech — Debate (2nd Day) (19 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I am happy to clarify that point. It is not the case that the Ministry of Defence is overspent because of operations. The operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have been extremely important. It is significant that the money for those operations has come from the Treasury. It is a big commitment. Around £18 billion has come from the Treasury for operations since 2001, on top of the...

Armed Forces: Political Activity — Question (3 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, regular service personnel are free to join political parties. They are not permitted to take an active part in political activities during their service with the Armed Forces.

Armed Forces: Political Activity — Question (3 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, the noble Lord raises some interesting speculation about what might happen on some future hypothetical occasion should there be a change of Government. Queen's Regulations give very clear guidance on what should happen when members of the Armed Forces seek to participate in politics. As I mentioned, it is possible to be a member of a party but not to be active in it. There are also...

Armed Forces: Political Activity — Question (3 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, the pensions of those who serve in our Armed Forces at senior levels come into play as soon as they leave the service and they are significant. They are something that people work for and pay for. I think that those who leave senior positions in any area of life have to be extremely careful about what responsibilities they take on subsequently.

Armed Forces: Political Activity — Question (3 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I do not wish to talk about informal representations from the Dispatch Box, and, of course, any formal complaints would not come to Ministers because Queen's Regulations are enforced by the Army itself and not by Ministers. My noble friend is right that this is the terminal leave period. The former CGS stood down from his responsibilities on 28 August and does not leave the Armed...

Armed Forces: Political Activity — Question (3 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I have found the Tory Front Bench, as indeed all Members of this House, very diligent in their responsibilities in questioning what is happening in the Ministry of Defence.

Elections: Armed Forces — Question (2 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: First, my Lords, I am sure the whole House will wish to join me in offering sincere condolences to the family and friends of Staff Sergeant Olaf Schmid of 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Regiment Royal Logistical Corps, who was killed on operations in Afghanistan this past week. Turning to the Question, military personnel and their families who are posted or serving overseas are able to vote...

Elections: Armed Forces — Question (2 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: On the first point, my Lords, it is important that we make it clear to those who serve on our behalf that we hope that they will participate in the election process. With regard to those being introduced into our services, information about registration is given at the time of the induction procedure, and the MoD and others try to keep registration up to date, paying particular attention to...

Elections: Armed Forces — Question (2 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: Yes, my Lords. The service voter registration order increased the period of registration for service voters. However, we are finding that the majority of service voters are actually registered at a domestic address; three-quarters are registered in that way. It is true that not as many are registered as we would wish, but the trend is improving. The next survey to identify any changes in the...

Elections: Armed Forces — Question (2 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, the issue indeed goes wider than military personnel. I know that the Ministry of Justice, with the Electoral Commission and other interested parties including the MoD, is considering whether there are other means of facilitating the participation in elections by those who are abroad. Obviously this has to be thought through very carefully in order to avoid the potential for fraud,...

Elections: Armed Forces — Question (2 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I do not think that anybody would dissent from those comments. My honourable friend in another place, Kevan Jones, met the chair of the Electoral Commission in September on this issue. Michael Wills, who is the Minister at the Ministry of Justice, has met the families federations to discuss this, and, as I said, all three of the interested parties—the Ministry of Justice, the...

Elections: Armed Forces — Question (2 Nov 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I am sure that Members of this House remember that very well, and I am also sure that Members have voted as service personnel. I do not fall into either category but I hear what my noble friend says.

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, first, I know that the whole House will wish to join me in offering our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Corporal James Oakland from the Royal Military Police, who was killed on operations in Afghanistan last week, and Corporal Thomas Mason of The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, who succumbed to his injuries at the Royal Centre for Defence...

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I happily acknowledge the expertise that the noble Lord has—and, indeed, that other noble Lords in this House have—in the Territorial Army. I know that there is a great deal of experience here. He asks what led to the decision. In part it was the improved recruitment to the Regular Army, which is more than 1,000 up on last year. Land Forces decided that, because of those...

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, this is a very good opportunity to reiterate the appreciation of the whole House for all of those who serve in the Territorial Army, and indeed for all of our reservists. Earlier this week I had the pleasure of meeting some of the employers who have been mentioned, and who are extremely important in making sure that this system that we have is so successful. The last week has had...

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I think that if decisions were taken so simply, John Reid would be on the phone all the time.

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, that is an extremely important point and one which was, in a way, touched on in the reserves review earlier this year. It is important that those who are in the TA have all the benefits of all of the support mechanisms that we now know are necessary for all of those who serve in the Armed Forces. Whether the people who have served come back well or have been injured, or their...

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, this difficulty came about, as I mentioned earlier, because of the increase in recruitment to the Army. That is why it was Land Forces that made the original suggestion. It does not affect the other services.

Territorial Army — Question (29 Oct 2009)

Baroness Taylor of Bolton: My Lords, I fear that some things are beyond me. I think that we should all be somewhat cautious in the statements that are made. After all, those who are calling for no cuts anywhere are very often the same people who are not proposing any increase in defence spending whatever. As for the Territorial Army, it was the party opposite which reduced numbers from 90,000 to 60,000.