Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps is he taking to support SMEs in the Defence supply chain to develop innovative technologies.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is committed to making it easier for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to do business with defence, as we recognise that they are a rich source of innovation. We are working to improve our engagement with SMEs throughout our supply chain; for example, encouraging early visibility of forthcoming requirements, and expressing our requirements as outputs rather than detailed solutions to facilitate innovation.
The MOD is also encouraging SME involvement in the Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) and the £800 million Defence Innovation Fund. DASA helps government defence and security departments collaborate with the private sector and academia to rapidly develop innovative solutions to our most pressing national security and defence challenges. Since its establishment, DASA has committed £53 million to suppliers, with around half of the contracts awarded to SMEs.
To help develop innovative technologies, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory has also just launched 'SME Searchlight', an initiative to actively find and engage SMEs for defence research.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps to include Nepalese as an ethnicity category in the 2021 census.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to recruit more Gurkhas into the British Army; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
Gurkhas continue to make an outstanding contribution to the UK through their service in the British Army and are rightly held in high esteem. Gurkhas are recruited on an annual basis, based on the requirements set by the Brigade of Gurkhas, and we plan to continue annual recruiting on an enduring basis.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to increase the pension for former Gurkha soldiers; and if will he make a statement.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The Government is committed to ensuring that Gurkha veterans continue to receive a fair pension which provides for a good standard of living in Nepal. Gurkha pensions are currently increased in two ways. The first is through an annual increase based on the rate of inflation set by the Nepali Central Bank each year. The second is following a review of the outcome of the 10 yearly Indian Central Pay Commission to determine whether changes made to Indian pension rates, which Gurkha pension rates are currently based on, require increases to be made to British Gurkha Pension rates. The latest review is nearly complete and we expect to announce the outcome in due course.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Attorney General:
To ask the Attorney General, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the protection of British military veterans from prosecution; and if he will he make a statement.
Answered by Robert Buckland
By longstanding constitutional convention, the content of advice given by the Attorney General or by any Law Officers, or the fact that such advice has been given, is not disclosed outside of Government.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to seek to ensure the Saudi Arabian Government and the Turkish Government conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office continues to press Turkey and Saudi Arabia to carry out thorough investigations until responsibilities are clearly established and there is proper accountability and due process for any crimes committed. The Foreign Secretary spoke to the Saudi Foreign Minister on 20 October and I, and, our Ambassador to Riyadh, have subsequently reiterated this to the Foreign Minister.
On 24 October, the Prime Minister spoke to King Salman to reiterate the UK’s grave concerns about the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and strongly urged Saudi Arabia to cooperate with the Turkish investigation and to be transparent about the results.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress is being made in tackling county lines criminal activity; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
We are absolutely committed to tackling county lines. The action we are taking is set out in the Serious Violence Strategy published on 9 April.
We are delivering a cross-Government and agency programme of work to tackle county lines through the County Lines Action Plan (which is published as an Annex to the Serious Violence Strategy). Last December we introduced the Drug Dealing Telecommunications Restriction Orders to enable police to shut down phone lines used to facilitate drug deals, and we have announced funding of £3.6million to establish a new National County Lines Co-Ordination Centre. Raising awareness of county lines and the appropriate safeguarding response is also very important. In July last year we published guidance on county lines for frontline practitioners to help them identify and respond to county lines exploitation and we are currently delivering a nationwide awareness-raising communications campaign.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the likelihood of a peace deal between the Government of Afghanistan and the Taliban; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Mark Field
On 7 June, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani announced a unilateral, temporary Eid ceasefire. We welcome and support this initiative to try and reduce violence. We hope that the Taleban will join the ceasefire.
This follows President Ghani's offer to the Taleban of peace talks without preconditions. He made this bold offer in February at the meeting of the Kabul Process for Peace and Security Cooperation. He invited the Taleban to contribute to creating a political process to resolve the conflict. Regional states and the international community endorsed this offer.
We believe it is now for the Taleban to respond. They have talked publicly about desiring peace for Afghanistan. If they wish to play a political role in the country's future, and if they share the goals of stability and security for its population, they must enter a political process.
The British Government believes that a political solution is the only way to achieve lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan. This long term effort will require careful diplomacy, difficult decisions and compromises on all sides. We should not expect a quick breakthrough. We will continue to support the Afghan people as they seek the peace they so deserve.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will bring forward legislative proposals for a statute of limitations to protect British veterans of combat operations in (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Iraq, (c) Afghanistan, (d) the Falklands and (e) all other combat theatres from (i) repeat prosecutions and (ii) unfounded historical allegations.
Answered by Gavin Williamson
In respect of Northern Ireland, the Government believes that the institutions proposed in the 2014 Stormont House Agreement are the best way to ensure a fair, balanced and proportionate approach to addressing the legacy of the past. The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) is currently consulting on how the Stormont House Agreement could be implemented. In recognition of the fact that others - such as the House of Commons Defence Committee - support different ways forward such as the creation of a statute of limitations, the NIO consultation includes an open question to allow those views to be expressed. The Government will consider all responses to the consultation before deciding on next steps.
In respect of Iraq, the Iraq Historical Allegations Team was closed in June 2017 and its remaining caseload passed to the service police, who expect their investigations to be substantially complete around the end of 2018.
On Afghanistan, Operation Northmoor has completed over 95% of its caseload. Investigations are expected to be concluded by the end of 2018.
The Ministry of Defence is not aware of any historic criminal investigations in respect of events in the Falklands or other combat theatres.
Asked by: Leo Docherty (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to deploy additional troops to Afghanistan; what role those troops will have; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
No decisions have been taken on sending additional UK troops to Afghanistan. The UK makes an important contribution to the non-combat NATO Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan, and as a result, our contribution is kept under regular review to ensure it remains suited to the needs of the mission.