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Armed Forces Personnel

Secondary information

Type

Parliamentary proceeding

Reference

535 c468-548 

Session

2010-12

Department

Ministry of Defence

Chamber / Committee

House of Commons chamber

Proceeding contributions

Derek Twigg | 535 c533 (Link to this contribution) indicated assent.

Penny Mordaunt | 535 c538-9 (Link to this contribution) I declare an interest as a Royal Navy reservist, and I would add, for the benefit of my hon. Friend ...

Show all contributions (145)

Fabian Hamilton | 535 c519 (Link to this contribution) I agree with everything the hon. Gentleman has said about the incidence of mental ill-health and the...

Dan Jarvis | 535 c502-3 (Link to this contribution) I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her intervention, and I share her thoughts about that medal. I k...

Nick Harvey | 535 c473-4 (Link to this contribution) As my hon. Friend rightly says, I have seen that for myself. I visited earlier this year and I know ...

Lord Beamish | 535 c480 (Link to this contribution) I know that the consultants brought in by the MOD estimate that the figure would be more than £3 bil...

Bob Russell | 535 c485 (Link to this contribution) In the context of morale, the shadow Minister has not yet mentioned the condition of armed forces ho...

Lord Beamish | 535 c484-5 (Link to this contribution) I disagree. We put in place, with the Royal British Legion, support for bereaved families at militar...

Oliver Colvile | 535 c519-20 (Link to this contribution) If I may say so, that is a non sequitur. A range of people, from across the board, regularly come in...

Chris Evans | 535 c521-2 (Link to this contribution) I agree, and I have said it before. I digress from the debate, but the miners' compensation scheme w...

Robert Syms | 535 c513-4 (Link to this contribution) My right hon. Friend makes a good point; of course, he is very experienced in this area. That raises...

Lord Dodds of Duncairn | 535 c472 (Link to this contribution) On the point about the principles and practical application of the military covenant applying across...

Sheryll Murray | 535 c528-30 (Link to this contribution) Armed forces personnel issues are very close to my heart. My daughter serves as a Royal Navy officer...

Alison Seabeck | 535 c547 (Link to this contribution) On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. The Government statement today on Project Avanti, which is a...

Lord Robathan | 535 c547-8 (Link to this contribution) Further to that point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. I was not aware of that. I will most certainly en...

Speaker | 535 c538 (Link to this contribution) I remind the next speaker that she must resume her seat by half-past 5.

John Glen | 535 c536-7 (Link to this contribution) I begin by acknowledging, as many others have, the welcome and historic breakthrough of enshrining t...

Jim Shannon | 535 c528 (Link to this contribution) I thank the Minister for that positive response, which will take care of some of the concerns that w...

Derek Twigg | 535 c530-2 (Link to this contribution) I should like to put on the record my admiration for our armed forces and, of course, for the servic...

Speaker | 535 c532 (Link to this contribution) Order. The winding-up speeches will begin at half-past 5 and we have four Members who wish to speak....

Tobias Ellwood | 535 c532-3 (Link to this contribution) It is an honour to participate in this debate. I begin as others have done by declaring an interest ...

Tobias Ellwood | 535 c533-5 (Link to this contribution) I see the hon. Gentleman nodding. That is not the way that we should be using our armed forces perso...

Christopher Pincher | 535 c535-6 (Link to this contribution) Bearing in mind your advice, Mr Deputy Speaker, I shall tailor my remarks and speed of delivery acco...

Russell Brown | 535 c541-2 (Link to this contribution) If that is the case, we should congratulate all those who have made the effort to reach that sum. T...

Lord Robathan | 535 c542-7 (Link to this contribution) Let me add my condolences to those that have been expressed in relation to all our service personnel...

Russell Brown | 535 c539-41 (Link to this contribution) Once again, we have had a good debate. Like others, I want to begin by expressing my condolences to ...

Lord Robathan | 535 c541 (Link to this contribution) People collecting at tube stations is a new addition, and the hon. Gentleman might be interested to ...

Speaker | 535 c548 (Link to this contribution) I hope that has clarified the point of order. The Speaker has let it be known on several occasions t...

Lord Beamish | 535 c521 (Link to this contribution) When I was the Minister for Veterans, I made an offer to settle those cases. It was the lawyers repr...

Chris Evans | 535 c520-1 (Link to this contribution) The wonderful thing about defence debates in this Chamber is that they are so well informed. When we...

Lord Robathan | 535 c521 (Link to this contribution) I am grateful to hear what the hon. Gentleman is saying. May I suggest that he says that to the lawy...

Chris Evans | 535 c521 (Link to this contribution) I thank my hon. Friend for that. Coming from a mining area, he knows as well as I do how much the la...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c518 (Link to this contribution) Transparency is essential, and the big problem with the Honours and Decorations Committee is that it...

Oliver Colvile | 535 c518-9 (Link to this contribution) It is the job of the Queen to make decisions on who gets such honours. In the few minutes available...

Oliver Colvile | 535 c518 (Link to this contribution) If the hon. Lady wishes to intervene again, she is very welcome to do so.

Lord Robathan | 535 c528 (Link to this contribution) We have now ensured that if service personnel lose some of their 14 days' rest and recuperation on t...

Jim Shannon | 535 c526-8 (Link to this contribution) I thank the hon. Gentleman for that contribution. He gave me his card and he said, ““You can speak i...

Dai Havard | 535 c526 (Link to this contribution) In January I had the privilege of meeting members of the 1st Battalion Royal Irish Regiment in Nad A...

Bob Russell | 535 c524-5 (Link to this contribution) I was not aware of that. All I am saying is that a campaign has been organised by people who are see...

Jim Shannon | 535 c525-6 (Link to this contribution) I thank those Members who were responsible for securing this debate and, in particular, the Prime Mi...

Bob Russell | 535 c523-4 (Link to this contribution) I am obviously grateful for that informed observation. I am sure the hon. Gentleman will have ensure...

Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton | 535 c524 (Link to this contribution) Does my hon. Friend agree that on 5 or 6 February next year—I forget the exact qualification date—so...

Bob Russell | 535 c522-3 (Link to this contribution) I am delighted to inform the House that this year's Remembrance Sunday ““Songs of Praise”” will come...

Tobias Ellwood | 535 c523 (Link to this contribution) I feel obliged to intervene because it really is misleading to use a bit of the Daily Mail to pursue...

Susan Elan Jones | 535 c506-7 (Link to this contribution) I am sure the engagement that the hon. Member for Beckenham (Bob Stewart) must attend is a pressing ...

Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton | 535 c507-10 (Link to this contribution) I start by declaring my interest as a member of the reserve forces. I regret that I cannot make the ...

Rushanara Ali | 535 c510-2 (Link to this contribution) Let me start by adding to the tributes paid by Members on both sides of the House and offering my si...

Speaker | 535 c512 (Link to this contribution) Order. I was not going to intervene on the hon. Lady, but I remind Members to refer to current servi...

Robert Syms | 535 c512-3 (Link to this contribution) I am not a regular contributor to such debates—not least because I am usually outranked and certainl...

Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom | 535 c513 (Link to this contribution) One of the problems that my hon. Friend highlights is that the armed forces are the only people who ...

Bob Stewart | 535 c505 (Link to this contribution) I entirely agree, and I am sure that the Minister does as well. We must get that under control. Some...

Andrew Murrison | 535 c505 (Link to this contribution) Does not part of the difficulty lie in the MOD, whose civil servants, during both my hon. Friend's s...

Bob Stewart | 535 c505-6 (Link to this contribution) That is the dilemma. We want to encourage people to stay in the Army; we want to retain the experien...

Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton | 535 c505 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is advancing a powerful argument, with which I agree. Does he believe that the only s...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c518 (Link to this contribution) I understand that there is to be review of the body that is responsible for giving medals, which is ...

Oliver Colvile | 535 c518 (Link to this contribution) The body should be asked to give advice, but perhaps ultimately, the decision ought to be made here....

Stella Creasy | 535 c514-7 (Link to this contribution) Absolutely. My point in raising this is simply to say that the concern for all of us who are interes...

Oliver Colvile | 535 c517-8 (Link to this contribution) I thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for calling me to speak, especially on the eve of Armistice day. I a...

Lord Robathan | 535 c518 (Link to this contribution) The Honours and Decorations Committee might be obscure, but it exists to give advice to Her Majesty ...

Sheryll Murray | 535 c514 (Link to this contribution) Will the hon. Lady acknowledge that my hon. Friend the Member for Gosport (Caroline Dinenage) is mar...

Stella Creasy | 535 c514 (Link to this contribution) I apologise—I see the hon. Lady shaking her head. I was not aware that she had a connection as well....

Sheryll Murray | 535 c514 (Link to this contribution) indicated dissent.

Stella Creasy | 535 c514 (Link to this contribution) I am honoured to follow the hon. Member for Poole (Mr Syms), who talked passionately about the impor...

Bob Stewart | 535 c505 (Link to this contribution) I thank my right hon. Friend. I am sure that he is correct. However, I am not trying to give exact f...

Bob Stewart | 535 c505 (Link to this contribution) The Minister is about to correct me, so I shall sit down and listen.

Lord Robathan | 535 c505 (Link to this contribution) Off the top of my head, I think we have four three-star officers in the Army at present, although I ...

Bob Stewart | 535 c504-5 (Link to this contribution) It is highly appropriate that we conduct this defence debate only a few hours after armed forces vet...

Mark Tami | 535 c503 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is moving on to the point that we need to do more for those who have not adjusted as ...

Dan Jarvis | 535 c503-4 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend makes a useful point, which has already been highlighted by other Members in the deba...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c501 (Link to this contribution) Does my hon. Friend share with me a great sigh of relief that it has finally been agreed that those ...

Dan Jarvis | 535 c501 (Link to this contribution) It is a privilege to take part in today's debate, especially at a time when the whole of Britain and...

Bob Russell | 535 c471 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is right to pay tribute to the previous Government for the measures they took. The ve...

Nick Harvey | 535 c470-1 (Link to this contribution) I had a feeling my hon. Friend would intervene on that matter. It is certainly the case—this has bee...

Julian Brazier | 535 c470 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is making a thoughtful speech. Does he agree that that challenge will increase marked...

Nick Harvey | 535 c469-70 (Link to this contribution) I note what my hon. Friend says and I shall draw his remarks to the attention of the RAF, but in res...

Nick Harvey | 535 c469 (Link to this contribution) It is a pleasure to see my hon. Friend in his place today, and I should like to thank him for his wo...

Edward Leigh | 535 c469 (Link to this contribution) I do not want to repeat what I said yesterday to the Prime Minister—there is no need—but on the wide...

Nick Harvey | 535 c468 (Link to this contribution) I can give the hon. Gentleman the assurance he seeks. There has been no cut in the funding of the Na...

Tobias Ellwood | 535 c468-9 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is absolutely right to begin his speech by recognising Remembrance day. All hon. Memb...

Nick Harvey | 535 c468 (Link to this contribution) I beg to move,"That this House has considered the matter of Armed Forces Personnel." Tomorrow, at t...

Derek Twigg | 535 c468 (Link to this contribution) Will the Minister shed some light on this matter? The Times today says that there is a cut in the fu...

Bob Russell | 535 c473 (Link to this contribution) The morale of the soldier is uppermost, but following on from the previous question, my hon. Friend ...

Julian Brazier | 535 c474 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend is touching on an extremely important point. Will he confirm that we have started to ...

Nick Harvey | 535 c471 (Link to this contribution) The principle of an all-encompassing medal has been considered several times, but to date, at least,...

Penny Mordaunt | 535 c471-2 (Link to this contribution) Is the Minister aware of the concern that the armed forces personnel who will be made redundant, but...

Nick Harvey | 535 c472 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend makes a very good point. We will take it away and give it some serious consideration,...

Nick Harvey | 535 c472 (Link to this contribution) We certainly want the covenant operating, in practice and effect, across the whole UK. The armed for...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c472 (Link to this contribution) Does the Minister agree that one cut that has hit families particularly hard has been the decision n...

Nick Harvey | 535 c472-3 (Link to this contribution) Unless I misheard, the hon. Lady suggested that the impact would be felt this winter. The regrettabl...

Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton | 535 c477 (Link to this contribution) Looking to the future, will my hon. Friend say a few words about how he anticipates members of our a...

Nick Harvey | 535 c476-7 (Link to this contribution) I am sure that my hon. Friend is right to say that that will be the outcome. I say again that what h...

Nick Harvey | 535 c475 (Link to this contribution) We certainly do, and I agree very much with what the hon. Lady says. The Royal Marines were undoubte...

Oliver Colvile | 535 c475 (Link to this contribution) The Hasler unit in my constituency does an enormous amount of work on prosthetics and so on. May I e...

Nick Harvey | 535 c474 (Link to this contribution) I can assure my hon. Friend that he is quite right about that. The changes made are important, and w...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c474-5 (Link to this contribution) Will the Minister confirm that we all owe a huge debt of gratitude to the Royal Marines and charitie...

Nick Harvey | 535 c476 (Link to this contribution) May I correct my hon. Friend? Headley Court is not due to close in the near future. We are talking a...

Andrew Murrison | 535 c476 (Link to this contribution) Real estate is clearly important, but does my hon. Friend agree that one of the chief advantages of ...

Nick Harvey | 535 c475-6 (Link to this contribution) It is very kind of my hon. Friend to issue that invitation, but I have actually already visited and ...

Tobias Ellwood | 535 c476 (Link to this contribution) On rehabilitation, I hope that my hon. Friend will join me in paying tribute to the work done at Hea...

Bob Stewart | 535 c497 (Link to this contribution) As my hon. Friend the Member for Canterbury (Mr Brazier) said, one problem is that when reservists a...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c497-8 (Link to this contribution) I most certainly do agree. It is even more important that we recognise the need to give such service...

Bob Stewart | 535 c497 (Link to this contribution) Will the hon. Lady give way?

Madeleine Moon | 535 c497 (Link to this contribution) I most certainly will give way to the hon. and gallant Gentleman.

Madeleine Moon | 535 c496-7 (Link to this contribution) I most certainly do congratulate such organisations. Service personnel have mentioned to me how impo...

Andrew Murrison | 535 c500-1 (Link to this contribution) Absolutely. The military covenant is not laid down didactically in the Armed Forces Act. It was deba...

Andrew Murrison | 535 c499-500 (Link to this contribution) I entirely agree. Last week, with a number of hon. Members, I rattled a tin for the Royal British L...

Helen Grant | 535 c500 (Link to this contribution) Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to give tangible meaning to the military covenant, and that t...

Andrew Murrison | 535 c498-9 (Link to this contribution) I start by declaring my interest as a service pensioner and a current member of the reserve forces. ...

Dai Havard | 535 c499 (Link to this contribution) I recognise what the hon. Gentleman says and congratulate him on behalf of all hon. Members on his w...

Helen Goodman | 535 c480 (Link to this contribution) On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I have been listening to the evidence given by James Murd...

Lord Beamish | 535 c479-80 (Link to this contribution) I am absolutely astonished. The Minister had 40 minutes in which to make an announcement, but did no...

Nick Harvey | 535 c479 (Link to this contribution) I think the hon. Gentleman conflates two things. A written ministerial statement has been issued tod...

Lord Beamish | 535 c478-9 (Link to this contribution) I should like to begin by joining the Minister in his thoughts on the loss of the soldier in Afghani...

Nick Harvey | 535 c478 (Link to this contribution) Madam Deputy Speaker, I was indeed coming to the end of my speech. I entirely acknowledge the point ...

Speaker | 535 c478 (Link to this contribution) Order. Minister, you have been very generous in giving way, but you might not be aware that there is...

Richard Graham | 535 c478 (Link to this contribution) The Minister might have heard earlier the suggestion from the Leader of the House, in response to my...

Nick Harvey | 535 c477-8 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend makes a good point. It is perfectly clear that taking pre-emptive measures to prevent...

Speaker | 535 c480 (Link to this contribution) Anything going on in respect of evidence given to a Select Committee is a matter for that Committee ...

Speaker | 535 c483 (Link to this contribution) Order. We really do not need a continuous commentary from Members who do not wish to intervene. A Me...

Lord Beamish | 535 c482-3 (Link to this contribution) No, actually, it is not. In July 2009, I produced a Green Paper on the covenant. I do not think the ...

Nick Smith | 535 c483 (Link to this contribution) I have received letters from constituents who are worried about the effects of the abolition of the ...

Lord Beamish | 535 c483 (Link to this contribution) As I was saying, I wonder whether the Minister will tell us why that change has been made permanent....

Bob Russell | 535 c482 (Link to this contribution) I am sorry that, having embraced the unity of the House on the subject of Her Majesty's armed forces...

Lord Beamish | 535 c481-2 (Link to this contribution) I am sorry, but I just do not accept that. It is all very well to say these are small matters. Why w...

Tobias Ellwood | 535 c482 (Link to this contribution) While preparing for the debate, I wondered whether the Opposition would raise the issue of the coven...

Lord Beamish | 535 c482 (Link to this contribution) It is not churlish to remind the hon. Gentleman what he did at that time. When we tabled an amendmen...

Nick Harvey | 535 c480-1 (Link to this contribution) Let me clarify the moves for which the Army has preliminarily planned: 7 Regiment the Royal Logistic...

Lord Beamish | 535 c486-7 (Link to this contribution) What has happened at Catterick and in other places is very interesting. People are speaking with the...

Julian Brazier | 535 c486 (Link to this contribution) Will the hon. Gentleman expand on how that proposal would work in places such as Catterick? It is th...

Lord Beamish | 535 c485-6 (Link to this contribution) That question is a bit rich—although the hon. Gentleman is a Liberal, and we know we have to accept ...

Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom | 535 c488-9 (Link to this contribution) My hon. Friend has got military experience, even if he has not fought. He highlights a point that my...

Julian Brazier | 535 c488 (Link to this contribution) Like my right hon. Friend, I have never fought, but is there not one further argument, in addition t...

Lord Arbuthnot of Edrom | 535 c487-8 (Link to this contribution) I have listened with interest, amusement and, often, respect to the words of the shadow Minister. I ...

Andrew Murrison | 535 c484 (Link to this contribution) On the subject of no disadvantage, does the hon. Gentleman agree that it is highly regrettable that ...

Lord Beamish | 535 c484 (Link to this contribution) I do indeed. It worries me that, not only the Royal British Legion and other service charities, but ...

Julian Brazier | 535 c492-3 (Link to this contribution) It is a great pleasure to follow my friend and Select Committee colleague, the hon. Member for Merth...

Dai Havard | 535 c491-2 (Link to this contribution) I agree that the Geneva convention sets out an important architecture, but let me give an example to...

Julian Brazier | 535 c493-5 (Link to this contribution) I am grateful to my hon. Friend. Three quarters of the US National Guard's fast-jet pilots are ex-re...

Bob Stewart | 535 c493 (Link to this contribution) When we talk about National Guard pilots, I worry, because I wonder how much training they have to d...

Helen Grant | 535 c496 (Link to this contribution) Isolation and worry are significant problems for many families when their loved ones are away. Does ...

Madeleine Moon | 535 c495-6 (Link to this contribution) It is a great pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for North East Hampshire (Mr Arbuthnot), who ...

Lord Beamish | 535 c490 (Link to this contribution) I slept in a tent with my hon. Friend in Iraq when I served on the Defence Committee. Does he recogn...

Dai Havard | 535 c489-90 (Link to this contribution) It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for North East Hampshire (Mr Arbuthnot), my colleag...

Bob Stewart | 535 c491 (Link to this contribution) The morality of war is very well set out in the Geneva convention. As long as our officers and soldi...

Dai Havard | 535 c490-1 (Link to this contribution) The ““Taffia”” is at work. That is true. At the local field hospital at Camp Bastion when we visited...

Subjects

Conditions of employment Armed forces Army Allowances Deployment Air force Coroners Housing Health services Finance Pay Staff Navy Mental health services Monuments Military decorations Reorganisation Cuts Veterans

Link

View this Parliamentary proceeding on www.publications.parliament.uk