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Defence in the UK

I beg to move,"That this House has considered the matter of defence in the UK." Tragically, we begin another defence debate against the backdrop of further loss of life in our armed forces. Two weeks ago, the 152nd member of the forces died in Afghanistan, taking the total fatalities there and in Iraq to 331. Closer to home, two lives have been appallingly lost on our own streets, with the murder of Sappers Patrick Azimkar and Mark Quinsey in Northern Ireland on 7 March. I cannot imagine that they envisaged being gunned down in cold blood at their base as they bought a final pizza before deploying to Afghanistan. Our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families of these brave people and with those rebuilding their lives after serious wounds. Those who sacrifice most are quite rightly at the centre of the agenda and of media coverage, but the armed forces do not view themselves as victims. They stand for far more than that: honour; duty; sacrifice; commitment. Oft mocked as unfashionable, but they are surely qualities to which the whole of society should aspire. It is a privilege from a personal point of view to work with these extraordinary people. I would like to focus this afternoon's debate on the essential relationship between the armed forces and society and the role that Government must play in that. Every day, the men and women of our armed forces are asked to do incredibly difficult things on our behalf in some of the most dangerous countries in the world. Tragically, some of them pay the ultimate price. It is therefore our duty to ensure that the balance between what they do for us and what we do for them in return is correct. We must look carefully at the interdependence that exists between the armed forces, the society from which they recruit and to which they ultimately return, and the Government who require so much of them. When we think about what the military do for us today, the overwhelming image is of soldiers, sailors and airmen bravely fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan. Those operations have a direct bearing on the safety of our streets back here in the UK. Our people are defeating terrorism there to stop it coming here. Similarly, they will soon complete a magnificent job in southern Iraq, leaving Basra transformed from how they found it six years ago. Quite rightly, we regularly debate operations overseas in this House, and I want to use today's theme of defence in the UK to spotlight the activities and the wider role that the armed forces play in the fabric of our society. Operationally, it is worth reminding ourselves that the Royal Navy has provided a continuous independent nuclear deterrent at sea since 1969. That is the ultimate guarantee of our national security, and it involves a submarine under the sea, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I drifted on to the conservativehome website the other day, as I do from time to time, and I looked at the debate there. That is part of the democratic process, and I accept that parties have to have these debates, but it would be enormously helpful to the people who provide that service to our nation if Opposition Members clarified—they can do so now, if they wish, or in their speeches—their support or otherwise for that continued provision.