Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Lord Bramall (Crossbench). It was answered on Tuesday, 21 July 2009.

Armed Forces: Media

Question: My Lords, I add my tribute to the soldiers who have lost their lives, many of them recently having been in my own regiment. Does the Minister not agree that what Parliament and the public expect of their military leaders is professional competence, honesty, integrity and a concern for their men? Would she not accept that, if a senior military officer is asked a straight question on a purely military matter, he is entitled to give—even publicly—a straight, honest, wholly professional answer that yes, in the current war situation, more of this or that is required if the overall aims are to be achieved and casualties restricted? If the press and sometimes politicians have contrived to make some of these things political rather than national, surely that should not inhibit the military leader doing his duty as he thinks fit.

Answer: My Lords, the noble and gallant Lord is emphasising what General Dannatt said about overpoliticisation, misconstruction and being misinformed by the reporting in the press. General Dannatt was returning from a normal visit to operations and was reinforcing the priorities that we have heard from commanders on the ground—the priorities to which we are responding, as the Prime Minister pointed out in his Statement in April, when he emphasised the need to do more to counter the increasing threat of IEDs.

Secondary information