Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Baroness Williams of Crosby (Liberal Democrat). It was answered on Tuesday, 25 October 2005.

Kashmir

Question: My Lords, I am sure that the whole House will be pleased about the three Chinooks being sent over the weekend and, in particular, I congratulate DfID on the active part that it has played. However, it took 11 days to make the decision to send the Chinooks—11 days in which literally hundreds of people who might have been saved died in Pakistan. If we believe in the battle for hearts and minds, what more effective way is there to win that battle than to show the Muslim community throughout the world that we care profoundly about those who suffer who are Muslim as well as those who are not?

Answer: My Lords, the noble Baroness is absolutely right to say that speed is of the essence in this matter. We should recognise that the United Kingdom responded extremely quickly, for example in the provision of a number of helicopters before the MoD Chinooks. In terms of the work that DfID has done, over £18 million has already been committed out of the £33 million that has been set aside, including a whole range of support, such as tents, global positioning systems and the UK search and rescue team, which has already made a dramatic impact on the ground. However, we must also recognise that taking something as complex as a Chinook helicopter into the terrain in which the disaster has taken place is no small task. The way in which the Ministry of Defence has been able to respond in deploying the helicopters—they are now deployed—is something on which it is to be congratulated. It takes time to do that, and it has been done in response to the need that has been described, as the situation has evolved on the ground.

Secondary information

Type: Oral question
Reference: 674 c1067
Session: 2005-06
Oral question type: 1st Supplementary
Chamber / Committee: House of Lords chamber
Subjects: Deployment Disaster relief Helicopters Pakistan Earthquakes Kashmir Military aid Iraq Peacekeeping operations Military aircraft USA Afghanistan
Link: View this Oral question on www.publications.parliament.uk