King’s Speech

Lord Ashton of Hyde Excerpts

Wednesday 15th November 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ashton of Hyde (Con)]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the right reverend Prelate and, of course, my noble friend Lord Minto, who it seems has acquired an impressive knowledge of his brief in just 24 hours.

We approach this debate in a more fractious, multi-polar and dangerous world. Recent events in the Middle East have reminded us that supposedly frozen conflicts can quickly reignite, with devastating consequences. Away from the Middle East, I think of the suffering of Ukraine, of over 100,000 ethnic Armenians being driven from their homes, of civil war returning to Sudan, another coup in the Sahel and regional tensions mounting in the Indo-Pacific.

All this and more has put a heavy burden on the men and women of our diplomatic and defence establishments, and we must make sure that we give them adequate resources to do their job. Defence spending, for example, is promised to increase to 2.5% of GDP, which is very welcome, but we still do not know when.

At present, the world’s attention is, understandably, focused on events in Israel and Gaza. I do not see a conflict between, on the one hand, robustly supporting the right of Israel to defend itself against terrorists who murder, torture and kidnap innocent civilians and, on the other hand, also expecting Israel to do so, as far as possible, without causing the same suffering to innocents that they themselves have received. Secondly, Israel must have a realistic strategic purpose behind its actions—otherwise, however many thousands of Palestinians are killed in Gaza, hundreds of thousands of their resentful fellow citizens will be left, many with no employment and no hope, and the whole bloody mess will continue.

With all that is going on in the world, we must not minimise the significant ongoing challenges still posed by Russia which, as the Integrated Review Refresh stated, is

“the most acute threat to the UK’s security”.

Russia’s malign influence is felt across eastern and south-eastern Europe and the western Balkans, extending upwards into the Arctic region and the High North. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is an attempt to redraw the border of Europe by force, and the war crimes that it has committed there are a rejection of civilised values. If Russia is allowed to succeed, the principles on which we have built deterrence and collective security in Europe will be seriously, perhaps fatally, undermined.

Despite heavy losses, Russia’s leadership believes its will to fight will outlast the West’s commitment to Ukraine. We must prove it wrong. I was reassured by my noble friend’s commitment from the Dispatch Box, together with the forceful words of the noble Lord, Lord Coaker.

Russia’s influence is also felt in the High North. Later this month, your Lordships’ International Relations and Defence Committee, which I am privileged to chair, will publish a report into the UK’s policy towards the Arctic and the High North. The Arctic occupies a central place in Russian military doctrine and strategic planning, and is likely to see increased Russia-China co-operation in future. Russian grey-zone activities in the High North are on the rise. We have seen the sabotage of sub-sea data cables and gas pipelines. Pilots in Finland cannot rely on GPS to navigate because of persistent Russian GPS jamming. I am looking forward to sharing the wider findings of the committee’s report on the Arctic with this House and the Government soon. The need for western unity and international co-operation as a safeguard against Russia’s military aggression and its destabilising behaviour has never been greater.

Finally, like other noble Lords, and as the first Conservative Back-Bench speaker, I place on record my thanks to and admiration for my noble friends Lady Goldie, who stepped down yesterday as Defence Minister, and Lord Ahmad at the FCDO, who is, I am glad to say, carrying on. They have both served the country and this House superbly, and for some considerable time, which is why it is particularly disgraceful that they and 11 other Ministers in this House are not paid a salary. It is something that the Government could easily and speedily rectify if they wished to do so, and I believe it would command support across the House.

Time is short, and I, of all people, do not want to upset the Whips, so I very much look forward to hearing the views of so many experienced noble Lords in the remainder of this debate.