Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to future proof the Armed Forces against new security threats.
Answered by James Heappey
The Defence Command Paper 2023 (DCP23) set out how the Armed Forces and wider Defence would modernise and adapt to the changing context.
Our Armed Forces are operating in an increasingly contested world and we are committed to ensuing our Armed Forces have the equipment to defend our nation and maintain strategic advantage. To deliver this, we have increased the budget for the Equipment Plan to £288.6 billion over the next decade. As outlined in the Defence Command Paper 23, we are focusing even more on Artificial Intelligence, digital capabilities, and assuring our supply chains, to make sure we adapt to changing technology and emerging threats.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the financial viability of his Department’s equipment programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
On 4 December 2023, The Permanent Secretary provided an update on the affordability of the Equipment Plan for 2023-33 to the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee. This can be found on gov.uk at:
We are working hard to deliver the equipment our service people need to keep the UK safe. We have therefore increased the budget for the Equipment Plan to £288.6 billion over the next decade, noting the Government's aspiration to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP when economic and fiscal conditions allow.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the letter from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to AQUIND Limited on 26 January 2024, reference EN020022, how much additional time his Department has requested to prepare substantive representations on the proposed AQUIND Interconnector Project.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
It would be inappropriate to comment on any potential input which might be submitted to an ongoing planning re-determination process. There have been no discussions or email correspondence between MOD Ministers and AQUIND stakeholders. Discussions between the Secretary of State and his French counterpart cover a variety of topics and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail of those discussions.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Ministers in his Department have had (a) discussions in person and (b) exchanges by e-mail with stakeholders on the AQUIND Interconnector Project.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
It would be inappropriate to comment on any potential input which might be submitted to an ongoing planning re-determination process. There have been no discussions or email correspondence between MOD Ministers and AQUIND stakeholders. Discussions between the Secretary of State and his French counterpart cover a variety of topics and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail of those discussions.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Ministers in his Department have had (a) in-person discussions and (b) e-mail correspondence with relevant stakeholders on the AQUIND Interconnector Project.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
It would be inappropriate to comment on any potential input which might be submitted to an ongoing planning re-determination process. There have been no discussions or email correspondence between MOD Ministers and AQUIND stakeholders. Discussions between the Secretary of State and his French counterpart cover a variety of topics and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail of those discussions.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he last discussed potential national security implications of the AQUIND Interconnector Project with his French counterpart.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
It would be inappropriate to comment on any potential input which might be submitted to an ongoing planning re-determination process. There have been no discussions or email correspondence between MOD Ministers and AQUIND stakeholders. Discussions between the Secretary of State and his French counterpart cover a variety of topics and it would not be appropriate to comment on the detail of those discussions.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to introduce a national protocol to provide consistent access to public services for Armed Forces families not based in one location.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Since 2011, the Armed Forces Covenant has been improving service provision to the Armed Forces community across the country. The Covenant is a promise by the nation ensuring that those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces, and their families, are treated fairly, wherever they are in the country. Its principles are that members of the Armed Forces community should face no disadvantage compared to other citizens in the provision of public and commercial services, and that special provision is appropriate in some cases, especially for those who have given most, such as the injured and the bereaved.
The Covenant is deliberately designed to be flexible to ensure the relevant organisations retain the ability to take decisions about service delivery that are right for their local context and circumstances.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of Israel’s compliance with arms licence criteria.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
All applications for export licences are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria.
We continue to monitor closely the situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank, and if extant licences are found to be no longer consistent with the Criteria, including where there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law which governs armed conflict, then we are able to revoke, suspend or amend these licences.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when offensive military equipment was last provided to Israel.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Information is not held by the Ministry of Defence on the provision of offensive military equipment to Israel. Official statistics on licences granted to Industry for exports to Israel are held by the Department of Business and Trade.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, to outline what steps his Department is taking to make the Armed Forces inclusive for members of the LGBT+ community.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence is proud of all our LGBT+ military and civilian personnel, and the significant contribution they make to ensure national security, support our national interests, and safeguard our prosperity. It is essential to Defence operational effectiveness that we build a more inclusive and diverse organisation to achieve a stronger, healthier, and more resilient workforce and maximise the talent of all our people.
We are committed to continue working with our LGBT+ networks to improve the lived experience of Service personnel and civilian staff. They provide excellent support to the LGBT+ community through conferences, communications, and engagement, and provide direct support to individuals as required.
Our Armed Forces and civilian personnel regularly take part in London Pride, in addition to other Pride events across the country. Attendance at Pride events by Defence LGBT+ personnel is a powerful demonstration of how inclusive an employer Defence is and the extent to which we represent UK society. Uniformed personnel make a very public statement that you can be LGBT+ and serve your country. This challenges stereotypes and misconceptions held by serving personnel; potential recruits and gatekeepers; veterans; and the public more widely.
Defence is committed to taking forward restorative action for LGBT individuals who were impacted by historic policies. It is a priority for us to implement the vast majority of recommendations from the Lord Etherton report and guarantee that our LGBT+ personnel remain properly supported.
Finally, work is ongoing to update internal Defence policies and processes. We have streamlined the process for registering Armed Forces Chapels for same-sex couple marriage. This change will make it quicker and easier to do and, given that only two Chapels in England and Wales are currently registered for same-sex couples marriage, this change will have a highly positive impact on our LGBT+ community. Looking to the future, we are exploring options to develop a mechanism to ensure this process is as fast as it can be, to affirm equal opportunity for all Defence people. We are also working to update the online HR system for the Armed Forces with more declaration categories for faith and belief, gender, and sexual orientation. This will help to improve declaration rates which will allow us to target support in the right places.