Topical Questions

Question

Given the current global situation, will he make a statement on his departmental responsibilities?

Question

Given a recent incident involving migrants entering the UK near Rye, how will MOD work with Border Force and Home Office to better secure borders?

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Given the situation in Mali with Russian mercenaries hired by Malian rulers and French troop withdrawal, will changes be made to UK's 300-9 troops stationed there?

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Given the return of cold war, should the UK increase its defence spending to a higher target than 2%, such as 3%?

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Following recent Ukrainian cyber-attacks, how are the UK Government strengthening cybersecurity to combat growing threats?

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Given the interest, will my right hon. Friend see Spaceport Cornwall having a role in UK's defence space strategy?

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Following the consultation response, will the Minister confirm efforts to lower proposed 12-year threshold so foreign and Commonwealth families can benefit?

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Given a constituent's father, an Afghan army officer in hiding, will the Minister discuss eligibility under ARAP?

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Ahead of British nuclear test anniversary, will Ministers give recognition to these veterans?

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I am concerned that we cannot just conjure up battalions. May I ask you to reverse this disastrous decision to reduce our Army by 10,000?

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May I thank you, Mr Speaker, for the tribute paid to our dear friend and colleague Christopher Stalford? On a lighter note, may I ask the Secretary of State whether he would join me at the Northern Ireland airshow in my constituency, where all the armed services put on a magnificent display each year?

Question

With the armed forces parliamentary scheme, I have spent time with the Commando littoral response force in the high Arctic. Does my right hon. Friend agree that not only is this a show of NATO strength and unity, but also that the Royal Marine Commandos are valuable for their skills in mountain, Arctic and amphibious warfare?

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The Ministry of Defence leases 37,500 homes from Annington Homes. Does my right hon. Friend agree that we should make better use of this housing and work with local authorities to ensure that Afghan families have settled accommodation?

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While I was at Watford's ex-servicemen's club, I met Norman Mcguigan from the Official Minds at War charity. Good jobs help deliver good mental health; what is being done to ensure service personnel can take up jobs in our thriving defence industry?

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Does the Secretary of State agree that the same esteem, respect and co-operation that the UK enjoys with Australia will be a feature of UK-Scottish relations on matters related to defence and security after independence?

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Does the Minister agree that the armed forces charity SSAFA, which does a particularly excellent job on Anglesey, plays a vital role in supporting veterans?

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As we have already heard, the nuclear test veterans are a group of elderly individuals. Will he do so?

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Last year, the Royal Air Force took part in Exercise Blue Flag in Israel. What lessons did the Royal Air Force learn from working with the Israeli air force?

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Will the Secretary of State promise me that he will listen to the Reith lectures—especially the bits about artificial intelligence and robotic warfare—and then think about our defence plans?

Question

Like my hon. Friend the Member for Wrexham, I very much welcome the fact that the MOD is taking the Arctic and the threat from Russia along its 20,000-mile border in the Arctic very seriously indeed, as is NATO. It has long been promised that the MOD will produce a policy paper; when is it due to be printed, published or produced?

Question

What discussions has the Secretary of State had with allies about the numbers of people who might seek refugee protection in the event of a Russian invasion of Ukraine? How is he going to go about ensuring that there is an appropriate and co-ordinated humanitarian response?