---

Defence Policy

The British development in Afghanistan amounts to £510 million over four years, and there is USAID on top of that. Building the Afghan Government's capacity and giving hope to the Afghan people is an important part of the process. I accept and understand that troops, who are fighting hard in very difficult circumstances, tend to look to others and want them to do the absolute maximum to capitalise on the situation that they have managed to achieve, but I ask the hon. Gentleman to look at the situation in Afghanistan. Our capability in Helmand province is pretty joined up, with a 2-star civilian working alongside the brigadier as a team, and alongside Governor Mangal, who has been an excellent governor. Our whole military effort is not a stand-alone military effort, but a comprehensive programme, looking at what gets done when, making sure that the military do not run away from others' ability to keep up, and trying to plan the effort in a co-ordinated way. Of course it is not perfect; it never will be, but I think that that effort has improved and improved substantially.