Results 1-20 of 68 for iraq speaker:David Heath

Parliamentary Commissions of Inquiry (7 Jul 2009)

David Heath: ...for setting up such a commission of inquiry, its powers, rights and privileges; to amend the Inquiries Act 2005; and for connected purposes. The Bill is partly a response to the setting up of the Iraq inquiry and the excellent debate in the Chamber the week before last. It is partly an attempt to look ahead and to prepare the House for any eventuality that we may have to face. But...

Opposition Day — [14th allotted day]: Iraq Inquiry (24 Jun 2009) has video

David Heath: ...is both timely and valuable. I also accept right from the start that it is fair criticism of me and my colleagues to say that we approach this issue with a particular mindset. We opposed the war in Iraq and none of us have changed our minds on that. I and my party have never faltered in expressing our enormous respect for the courage and professionalism of the armed forces who are deployed...

Opposition Day — [14th allotted day]: Iraq Inquiry (24 Jun 2009) has video

David Heath: .... There are 179 reasons why the military want the truth to be out." Those are 179 good reasons, and one might add that there are several hundred thousand other good reasons in the state of Iraq.

Opposition Day — [14th allotted day]: Iraq Inquiry (24 Jun 2009) has video

David Heath: .... I strongly commend to the inquiry that it phases its work in such a way. If we can assist by giving an indication from this House that that would be our preference, I think that we should. The Iraq war was, in the view of many of us, a quite massive failure of British foreign policy that was aided and abetted by those on both sides of the House who were not prepared, perhaps, to consider...

Business of the House (7 May 2009) has video

David Heath: ...squirming on this issue—albeit it partly involves matters outside their own control—does them no credit at all, and that the ombudsman is right? Finally, let me turn to the issue of the Iraqi interpreters. I was absolutely against the expedition into Iraq, but I respect the fact that there were people in Iraq who were prepared to help the British forces by acting as...

Opposition Day — [9th Allotted Day]: Iraq War Inquiry (25 Mar 2009) has video

David Heath: ...glad that my hon. Friend is laying out the specious nature of the argument that nothing must distract the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence from their essential tasks in Iraq. Does he believe, as I do, that the fact that when our troops come home from Iraq they will almost certainly be redeployed to a conflict in Afghanistan makes that argument particularly...

Business of the House (6 Nov 2008) has video

David Heath: ..., and, secondly, to ensure that there is no doubt that communities that wish to commemorate those who have lost their lives in conflicts since the first and second world wars, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan, are entitled to do that.

Public Bill Committee: Counter-Terrorism Bill (24 Apr 2008)

David Heath: ...of the work that they do. Have you had any discussions, formally or informally, with your colleagues who have been dealing principally with the military inquests as a result of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan? Are there any instances from them that might suggest an urgent need for this provision?

Oral Answers to Questions — Defence: Topical Questions (3 Mar 2008)

David Heath: My hon. Friend the Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) and I recently visited RNAS—Royal Naval Air Station—Yeovilton, and I pay tribute to the helicopter squadrons who have been deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Lynx aircraft, however, plays a crucial operational role for our surface fleet, and it is reaching the end of its flying life. Will the Minister confirm when he expects to...

Business of the House (28 Jun 2007) has video

David Heath: ...-years assessments, because they are clearly not correct and we need to revise our flood defences in the light of recent events? May we have a statement from the Prime Minister on his position on Iraq? It is important that we know where he stands on that. Lastly, I tried to co-operate with the Government last week—I always do, and I am still mulling over the offer of the Wales...

Oral Answers to Questions — Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Syria (16 Jan 2007)

David Heath: The United Nations' estimate of 35,000 civilians killed last year will, I think, dispel any lingering doubt that Iraq is in a state of civil war, and the resolution of that will desperately need Syria's involvement. How can we reconcile the United Kingdom Government's efforts in support of the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group, which favour engagement with Syria, with the White House's...

Business of the House (11 Jan 2007)

David Heath: ...in the secure estate—that is not a criticism of the open prison system. This is a matter of proper concern to the House, and we should have a debate on public safety. I welcome the debate on Iraq, although I regret that it will not be on a substantive motion and that the Prime Minister will not open it. We need an urgent statement from the Prime Minister on the implications of...

Bill Presented: Christmas Adjournment (19 Dec 2006)

David Heath: ...8212;that is, the al-Yamamah arms sale and the discontinuation of the investigation—and the second is the most important issue facing all hon. Members and the country: the ongoing conflict in Iraq. I understand the reason for the timing of the Attorney-General's statement last Thursday, in order to avoid market fluctuation. I am less forgiving of its timing in terms of the recess,...

Bill Presented: Christmas Adjournment (19 Dec 2006)

David Heath: ...has been brought into political debate on matters where it would be far better if a greater degree of independence were demonstrated. I want to move on to the biggest issue faced by any of us—Iraq. I make no apologies for doing so. On the last count, I have in the lifetime of this Parliament asked for debates on Iraq 14 times during business questions and six times on other...

Bill Presented: Christmas Adjournment (19 Dec 2006)

David Heath: ...of Carne Ross, former First Secretary at the United Nations, who said in his evidence to the Foreign Affairs Committee: "During my posting, at no time did"— the Government— "assess that Iraq's WMD (or any other capability) posed a threat to the UK or its interests. On the contrary, it was the commonly-held view among officials that any threat had been effectively contained."...

Bill Presented: Christmas Adjournment (19 Dec 2006)

David Heath: ...that, but we have to make speedy progress towards that end. Lastly, there is the issue of the machinery of government. One of the things that was displayed throughout the decision-making process on Iraq was the Prime Minister's presidential style, and the lack of consensual arrangements in Cabinet and the wider Government. It was recently proposed that this country should perhaps have a...

Business of the House (14 Dec 2006)

David Heath: ...wait until Tuesday's pre-recess Adjournment debate to offer Christmas wishes to you, Mr. Speaker, and to the House. I thank the Leader of the House for stating that we will finally have a debate on Iraq. I have asked only 14 times for such a debate since the start of this Parliament. We very much look forward to the Foreign Secretary actually attending the House and giving some sort of...

Business of the House (7 Dec 2006)

David Heath: I am afraid that a press conference in Washington DC is not an appropriate response to this House to a fundamental review of policy in Iraq that has inevitable consequences for British policy. We need a statement here; what is more, we need a debate here on our position on Iraq. I understand that the Andaman islanders have only five numbers in their language—one, two, one more, some...

Business of the House (23 Nov 2006)

David Heath: May I ask yet again for a debate in Government time on Iraq? Before the Leader of the House tells us that we had a debate yesterday in the context of the Queen's Speech, may I say that that is no substitute for a structured debate on the Government's strategy in Iraq? There is a debate in another place on 5 December, notwithstanding the Queen's Speech debate. May we have such a debate as a...

Business of the House (2 Nov 2006)

David Heath: ...prorogue on Thursday, and that it is now anticipated that it can do so on Wednesday, he could use the time effectively on Wednesday and give us a debate on a number of subjects—for instance, Iraq. The situation there is parlous, and there is confusion among Government Ministers about the subject of the inquiry. The Prime Minister said that an inquiry "would have dismayed our...