Bill Rammell: No, I want to make some progress. The hon. Member for The Wrekin also asked about the Borona programme and mentioned the allegation of a five-year gap at RAF Cosford. Let me be clear that that is not true; there is no intention to mothball the site. On current planning, the Army will assume ownership of the site, following the Defence College of Aeronautical Engineering vacation, in 2015. It...
Bill Rammell: If the hon. Gentleman wants a further discussion about this-I will give way briefly to him-I would be happy to meet him.
Bill Rammell: I reiterate to the hon. Gentleman what I have just said: there is no intention to mothball the site. The Army will assume ownership, following the vacation, in 2015. I am more than happy to talk to him in more detail about how this will go forward. My hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow, South-West (Mr. Davidson) is a consistent, coherent and dogged advocate of his constituents in support of...
Bill Rammell: In large part, we have had a good and constructive debate, and despite the political hyperbole, there is a greater consensus on defence than is sometimes apparent. I wish to start, as did the Secretary of State, by paying tribute to our brave servicemen who have lost their lives in Afghanistan in recent days. They are Senior Aircraftman Luke Southgate of II Squadron RAF Regiment, Rifleman...
Bill Rammell: That is the truth. If the Opposition are committed to the same expenditure level, they could set out with clarity and conviction how they would spend the budget differently. Again, there is a deafening silence. As we observe the 26 per cent. poll lead that the Conservatives have mislaid, we see an underlying theme in defence and many other issues: their position does not add up. The general...
Bill Rammell: I wholeheartedly agree. There have been some frankly quite disgraceful attacks on the role and work of civilians in the Ministry of Defence over recent months. It is important that we place on record the belief of those in the military that they could not do the job that they do without the support of the civilians. We then had an interesting debate, generated and led by my hon. Friend the...
Bill Rammell: I have made the Government's position on the carriers very clear, but what the hon. Gentleman outlines is not consistent with what the shadow Secretary of State said to the trade unions last week: that on day one of a Conservative Government, they would start examining the break clauses, item by item. That is a very different position.
Bill Rammell: I agree very much with my hon. Friend, who is an incredibly strong campaigner for his constituents and the carriers. The message that he puts forward is clear and precise.
Bill Rammell: I will make some progress, then I will give way. The shadow Secretary of State also referred to the leaked report from the Chief of the General Staff, but he did not highlight the fact that, in that report, the Chief of the General Staff rightly said that "soldiers feel increasingly well supported and resourced on operations," and praised the "medical care in-theatre and in the UK". The Chief...
Bill Rammell: We have made our commitment to the carriers abundantly clear, most particularly through the signing and the starting of the contracts last week. Let me answer the serious question that the right hon. Member for North-East Hampshire (Mr. Arbuthnot) asked-he knows that I am committed to meeting him and his constituents-about whether we could be sure that both pilots involved in the Chinook...
Bill Rammell: UK armed forces continue to play an integral role in the command and control of EU, NATO and coalition counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia. We are determined to play our part, through the Royal Navy, and in close co-operation with other Government Departments and countries, to tackle piracy and to protect legitimate trade and transport.
Bill Rammell: We strongly welcome the commitment from the Government of the Seychelles, which was encapsulated in the Djibouti announcement, to consider hosting a regional counter-piracy chamber to prosecute pirates within their national jurisdiction. One of the key challenges that we face is ensuring that prosecutions can take place locally and regionally, and we will continue to press partners in that...
Bill Rammell: I wholeheartedly agree with the right hon. Gentleman. While I understand where people who desire the payment of ransoms are coming from, in the longer run it would simply lead to greater problems and more kidnappings-it would store up problems for the future. The Government are therefore right to resist the payment of ransoms.
Bill Rammell: I wholeheartedly agree with my hon. Friend. I know many colleagues on both sides of the House who have taken part in that scheme. Indeed, there is a dinner this evening, hosted by Mr. Speaker, that both the Secretary of State and I will attend. It is a genuinely worthwhile scheme that brings home very practically to Members across the House the reality of life in the armed forces.
Bill Rammell: I do not want to intrude on the private grief between the hon. Gentleman's party and the Liberal Democrats-and, in any case, I am unsure of its provenance. In respect of piracy, where there is credible evidence, we seek to move towards prosecutions, but where such evidence does not exist, we have to act differently. However, we are giving a wide range of assistance to maritime shipping...
Bill Rammell: I certainly agree with my hon. Friend that there is a link between the piracy challenge and the military challenges we face, but there is also the issue of the appalling human rights situation and lack of government in Somalia, and we therefore need to work across Government Departments and with our international partners to tackle the problem at source. Yes, there is a military component to...
Bill Rammell: The Royal Navy continues to meet all its operational tasking and remains extremely busy in support of current operations and standing commitments. The Royal Navy remains flexible and dynamic in its ability to respond to unforeseen events and emergent tasking.
Bill Rammell: As has been repeatedly made clear, this Government remain committed to the carriers-a commitment I have not heard made forcefully from those on the Conservative Benches.
Bill Rammell: May I say to the hon. Gentleman that we remain determined that the wishes of the Falkland islanders should be paramount? We have transformed our military presence since 1982 and we maintain an appropriate deterrence force on the island and in the south Atlantic, comprising a range of land, air and maritime assets. Of course, we keep our military presence under constant review to ensure that...
Bill Rammell: We do everything in our power and I am confident of our ability and capability to defend not only the Falkland Islands but all our overseas territories, in which I know the hon. Gentleman takes an interest.