Results 1-20 of 35 for trident speaker:Bruce George

Topical Debate: Defence Procurement (19 Jun 2008) has video

Bruce George: ..., we have to do something quite expensive about the quality of not only the personnel but the equipment. In fairness—I am being very fair to the Government—the Government fully support Trident, the joint strike fighter, Eurofighter, the carrier programme and so on. All the equipment must have come as a bit of shock to the Conservatives, who probably could not believe that a...

Oral Answers to Questions — Communities and Local Government: Defence Policy (16 Oct 2007) has video

Bruce George: ..., if not the best. The Tories' record on procurement was a little unsatisfactory. We are now hearing about the Government's procurement failures: the Eurofighter, the future rapid effect system, Trident, the joint strike fighter and two real aircraft carriers. When the Tories were in office, they tried to sell off one of our three little aircraft carriers to the Australians, and we had to...

Point of Order: Defence in the UK (26 Apr 2007)

Bruce George: ...concern is that the United States might do what it did after 1918-19: retreat into itself and say, "Well, it's your problem." It must not do that. However good our armed forces are, and even with Trident II or Trident III, could we survive? No, we could not. Can we rely on the European Union to defend us? No, we cannot. In the dangerous world in which we now live, there must be an...

Point of Order: Defence in the UK (26 Apr 2007)

Bruce George: ...the rhetoric and leg-pulling, and the claims that the Government have not done various things right, there is an incredible near-consensus on defence policy. Yes, there are those who do not want Trident, but there is substantial agreement on basic issues. Whichever party is in office over the next five to 10 years, I hope that that consensus will prevail. The challenges that the UK will...

Point of Order: Trident (14 Mar 2007)

Bruce George: No, I am sorry I cannot. There is a time limit. We have to retain Trident and replace it with Trident. Some might think that exchanging one model for another is hardly a momentous decision, but it is. Furthermore, it is a decision that many people approach with pre-conceived ideas. This is not mea culpa, but I believed for some time that replacing Polaris with Trident was the wrong decision....

Point of Order: Trident (14 Mar 2007)

Bruce George: ...to argue to some people the case for spending the 3 per cent. of our defence budget that the Foreign Secretary set out, which is far less than I believe it would have cost to replace Polaris by Trident. Then, we were talking about 15 or 20 per cent. of the defence budget, which was wholly erroneous. In those days, when I had changed my mind about the replacement of Polaris by Trident, I...

Point of Order: Trident (14 Mar 2007)

Bruce George: ...to say that they regard almost 2 per cent. of gross domestic product in an increasingly dangerous world as inadequate. Should we stay nuclear? I argue that we should. Should there be three or four Trident submarines? That is a matter of judgment, because if there is an accident three will become two, which will not give us a continuous presence. There are so many other arguments—

Oral Answers to Questions — Home Department: Trident (4 Dec 2006)

Bruce George: ...the leader of the Liberal Democrats has used, when my assistant and I wrote the minority report for the Defence Committee. It was a brilliant report, but totally wrong. The arguments that I now hear against Trident were the ones that I used a quarter of a century ago. One of the arguments was cost. Will the Prime Minister give us a ballpark figure, so that we have an indication of whether...

Orders of the Day — Armed Forces Discipline Bill [Lords] (17 Feb 2000)

Mr Bruce George: ..., it should not happen immediately. The person should be charged when the unit returns home. There was some nonsense on that point in the House of Lords. The fact is that, if someone aboard a Trident is suspected of an offence, the submarine will not surface so that the person can be taken ashore by Ministry of Defence police. It will not happen like that. If there is a crisis, the person...

NATO Enlargement (17 Jul 1998)

Mr Bruce George: ...GDP under the previous Government to about 2.5 per cent. now, and we are drifting a little lower. I see no evidence of a build-up of military equipment and threats. We have only one mechanism—Trident—for delivering nuclear weapons, and the numbers of warheads and missiles are dropping way below the numbers in France, which some hon. Members consider, although I do not, a...

NATO Enlargement (17 Jul 1998)

Mr Bruce George: ...over the years, but, even when he was anti-nuclear weapons, he was unequivocally pro-NATO. Many people on the same side of the Labour party as me in the early 1980s thought that money spent on Trident could be better spent on enhancing our conventional capability.

Defence Policy (27 Oct 1997)

Mr Bruce George: ...been cast and the sale completed. I also hope that we will return to the question of the Ministry of Defence police and security. Security cannot be compromised, and I hope that no more bits of Trident, or anything else, will go missing. Fraud in the MOD continues to be investigated, and if we continue to lose parts of Trident, as we apparently have in the past few years, supporters of...

Royal Navy (6 May 1993)

Mr Bruce George: .... When it comes to submarines, that discredited Labour Government in 1964–70 and in 1974–79 had 27 submarines plus four Polaris submarines. We are getting down to 16, plus Polaris/Trident. If the Government proceed with the sale of the century and provide Indonesia or whoever with a submarine fleet, we will be down to 12 compared with 27. Some hon. Members may mutter that the...

Nuclear Defence (14 Jan 1992)

Mr Bruce George: ...on Skybolt but was told, "No thank you, sir." He asked whether he would like Hound Dog but was told "No, we want Polaris." Subsequently, we got a nuclear system on which we are dependent. We hear talk of the fourth Trident submarine, but let us remember the fifth Polaris submarine which, when the Tories left office, was only an option. When the Tories came to office again in 1970, they...

Prayers: Nuclear Defence (22 Nov 1991)

Mr Bruce George: ...a minority in the Labour party now represent the views of the majority. The hon. Member for Barrow and Furness did not answer my question about what would be left to build in Barrow if the fourth Trident submarine were taken away. Perhaps he will tell his constituents and Government that the submarine-building programme is near to collapse. An innocent bystander listening to the speeches...

The Army (1 Jul 1991)

Mr Bruce George: ...strongly defended our armed forces —unlike in many previous debates in the House. It is ironic that the Minister of State's criticism of Labour's nuclear policy is that we are considering cancelling Trident SSBN 08. At one time, we were criticised for our intention to cancel SSBN 05, 06, and 07. It is legitimate to argue, bearing in mind strategic arms reductions, that three...

Orders of the Day — Defence Estimates: Second Day's Debate (19 Oct 1989)

Mr Bruce George: ...so far from making the right decision—to go for Boeing, AWACS after a disastrous earlier decision. The benefits to the country of offsets are difficult to see. The report on the progress of the Trident programme describes problems at Aldermaston, industrial disputes at Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd. and problems involving the procurement of the missile in the United...

Defence: First Day's Debate (30 Jun 1986)

Mr Bruce George: ...in that category in the Conservative party—will be exceedingly worried about what the Conservative party is doing. There seems to be euphoria about the fact that Polaris will be replaced by Trident. However, the White Paper has not addressed the question of how to reconcile the Government's aspirations, their commitments, and resources, although the Defence Select Committee has. If...

Orders of the Day — Defence (19 Jun 1984)

Mr Bruce George: ..., but the nature of modern war with fighter aircraft is that by the time the adversary is near the airfield its load will have been delivered, with lethal consequences. Much has been said about Trident. However, the Government will face problems, because they cannot have both Trident and adequate conventional defences. The Secretary of State seems to believe that, by central...

Royal Air Force (2 Feb 1984)

Mr Bruce George: ...policy. Civil servants and service men are worried that the cuts will bite deeply. I have no desire to repeat the arguments that I have used on many occasions about the consequences of the Trident programme, which, despite repeated denials from the Government, will have an adverse effect on the remainder of the conventional budget. Now the Government are adding another function to the...