[Un-allotted Half-Day] — Iraq

Part of Opposition Day – in the House of Commons at 5:31 pm on 31 October 2006.

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Photo of Michael Moore Michael Moore Shadow Secretary of State (Foreign Affairs) 5:31, 31 October 2006

The hon. Gentleman is right. We are seeing that there is a lot of pent-up demand for that debate.

Earlier this year, the leader of our party, my right hon. and learned Friend Sir Menzies Campbell, set out the key stages of a possible strategy for Iraq that would allow the phased withdrawal of all coalition troops. He talked especially about the need to internationalise and, specifically, to involve the neighbouring states of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Iran. There would be immense difficulties with that, not least because of the role of some of those countries in Iraq at present, their links with Hamas and Hezbollah, and fears about Iran's moves towards a nuclear capability. However, we must now contemplate that as part of the broader issue of regional stability. Those countries have a direct stake as neighbours. Iraq is one of the most intricate pieces of the jigsaw in their neighbourhood, and the middle east peace process is inextricably linked to what goes on in Iraq. Our Prime Minister says that he wants to stake his reputation on making progress with the middle east peace process. How on earth will that be possible while we are mired in Iraq and unwilling to deal with some of the key regional players?

The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence, Mr. Ingram, made a welcome statement in Westminster Hall last week:

"those people who are part of the problem must be part of the solution, otherwise they remain part of the problem ... We must reach out and find a way to deal with the problem."—[ Hansard, Westminster Hall, 25 October 2006; Vol. 450, c. 435-36WH.]

That is just one of the issues to be tackled. Other hon. Members have set out many more. We should be grateful for the Minister's recognition of at least that point, but that one concession does not amount to a strategy, and we need one fast.

The mid-term elections in the United States next week will set the scene for the report of the Iraq study group, which is expected between then and the end of the year. Are we just to accept the position passively, or will there be a proper debate here as well? The shadow Foreign Secretary has already indicated that there will be the traditional international affairs debate following the Queen's Speech in a couple of weeks. That debate will offer some scope for hearing more from the Government, but given that so many other issues are pressing at the moment—the middle east, Darfur, North Korea, Iran and Afghanistan—it will surely not be enough. The Government should thus either set aside an extra day for debate after the Queen's Speech, or provide time for a separate debate on a substantive motion in the very near future.

General Dannatt put it in bald terms. He said that we should

"get ourselves out sometime soon because our presence exacerbates the security problems".

He also said:

"We've been there 3 and a half years and we don't want to be there another 2, 3, 4, 5 years ... We've got to think about this in terms of a reasonable length of time ... and I hope that will be sometime soon."

His comments acknowledge that whatever our substantial obligations to the Iraqi people to sort out the mess that we helped to create in their country, ultimately our responsibilities are to our armed forces, who put their lives on the line. We need to be able to show that in doing so they are following a strategy that is clear and deliverable. We need to take account of what is happening in the USA and prepare an appropriate British strategy. That strategy has to recognise the worsening realities in Iraq; it has to appreciate the situation of our armed forces as described by General Dannatt and supported by many ex-Chiefs of the Defence Staff; and it has to amount to a plan for a phased withdrawal of British troops in months, not years.