It is a great pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (Jonathan Reynolds), who made a deeply sincere and moving speech that reminded us all what heroism is all about. This debate started with an outstanding speech by my right hon. Friend the new Foreign Secretary and...

It is a great pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (Jonathan Reynolds), who made a deeply sincere and moving speech that reminded us all what heroism is all about. This debate started with an outstanding speech by my right hon. Friend the new Foreign Secretary and...

indicated assent.

indicated assent.

I am most grateful to the Foreign Secretary for giving way. [Hon. Members: "Shadow Foreign Secretary!"] Shadow Foreign Secretary, I should say. Will the shadow Foreign Secretary now apologise for the record of the last Government in respect of getting the Department for International Development to support the Ministry of...

I am most grateful to the Foreign Secretary for giving way. [Hon. Members: "Shadow Foreign Secretary!"] Shadow Foreign Secretary, I should say. Will the shadow Foreign Secretary now apologise for the record of the last Government in respect of getting the Department for International Development to support the Ministry of...

I cannot pay my hon. Friend the Member for Newbury (Mr. Benyon) enough of a tribute for the remarkable speech that he has just made.

I cannot pay my hon. Friend the Member for Newbury (Mr. Benyon) enough of a tribute for the remarkable speech that he has just made.

The Secretary of State has been generous in giving way, and he has taken a long-term interest in reserves, for which I am particularly grateful. However, I really do urge him to bear in mind that, however professional our regular forces are, they have a very long history of not...

The Secretary of State has been generous in giving way, and he has taken a long-term interest in reserves, for which I am particularly grateful. However, I really do urge him to bear in mind that, however professional our regular forces are, they have a very long history of not...

So why do we not use more reserve aircrews, particularly for helicopters, as the Americans do? The fact that we currently have one reservist Apache pilot—oddly enough, a Royal Naval Reserve officer—out in Helmand shows that reservists can meet a range of such requirements, and plenty of people who work...

So why do we not use more reserve aircrews, particularly for helicopters, as the Americans do? The fact that we currently have one reservist Apache pilot—oddly enough, a Royal Naval Reserve officer—out in Helmand shows that reservists can meet a range of such requirements, and plenty of people who work...

He is a regular.

He is a regular.

The hon. Gentleman's strong point is made even more powerful when one reflects on the fact that Afghanistan is a tribal society. The danger is that, in seeking to expand so quickly, there will be parallels with Northern Ireland, for example, with disproportionate numbers of recruits coming from the north...

The hon. Gentleman's strong point is made even more powerful when one reflects on the fact that Afghanistan is a tribal society. The danger is that, in seeking to expand so quickly, there will be parallels with Northern Ireland, for example, with disproportionate numbers of recruits coming from the north...

In fact, we have had several outstanding speeches, including the one by my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Sussex (Mr. Soames). The bulk of the debate has focused, rightly, on Afghanistan, and I want to put on record how incredibly proud the men and women of Canterbury are of the...

In fact, we have had several outstanding speeches, including the one by my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Sussex (Mr. Soames). The bulk of the debate has focused, rightly, on Afghanistan, and I want to put on record how incredibly proud the men and women of Canterbury are of the...

This is, of course, one of the reasons why we need more citizen forces. Civilian technology is always well ahead of military technology.

This is, of course, one of the reasons why we need more citizen forces. Civilian technology is always well ahead of military technology.

My hon. Friend is making a powerful point. Does he agree that all those goods by definition end up in British ports, so we must have the capability to keep those ports clear of mines?

My hon. Friend is making a powerful point. Does he agree that all those goods by definition end up in British ports, so we must have the capability to keep those ports clear of mines?

Yes, my hon. Friend is absolutely right. With very little expenditure, we could do a great deal to fix our officer training. I have talked about recruitment. I end with what is at the heart of the problem of retention of officers and senior and junior NCOs in the Territorial...

Yes, my hon. Friend is absolutely right. With very little expenditure, we could do a great deal to fix our officer training. I have talked about recruitment. I end with what is at the heart of the problem of retention of officers and senior and junior NCOs in the Territorial...

May I start by paying tribute to the 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, better known as the Argylls, and the 3rd Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, a Territorial Army unit, both of which are based in my constituency? The Argylls returned from Afghanistan with one young...

May I start by paying tribute to the 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, better known as the Argylls, and the 3rd Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, a Territorial Army unit, both of which are based in my constituency? The Argylls returned from Afghanistan with one young...

I commend what the hon. Gentleman has just said, as I am sure that the whole House does. The downside of the growing concentration of our regular forces on a small number of so-called super-bases is that events such as he describes are gradually ending. Some of those super-bases are...

I commend what the hon. Gentleman has just said, as I am sure that the whole House does. The downside of the growing concentration of our regular forces on a small number of so-called super-bases is that events such as he describes are gradually ending. Some of those super-bases are...

On behalf of the whole all-party group, I should say that we are grateful for the way in which we have been used as a sounding board on this issue. I echo the comment made by the Chairman of the Defence Committee at our last meeting: it has been a...

On behalf of the whole all-party group, I should say that we are grateful for the way in which we have been used as a sounding board on this issue. I echo the comment made by the Chairman of the Defence Committee at our last meeting: it has been a...

My hon. Friend makes a very powerful point about this problem, which affects very damaged people, albeit a small number, who need help. Does he agree that perhaps the most disadvantaged group of all is those who have served in the reserves and cannot go back to a unit that...

My hon. Friend makes a very powerful point about this problem, which affects very damaged people, albeit a small number, who need help. Does he agree that perhaps the most disadvantaged group of all is those who have served in the reserves and cannot go back to a unit that...

I applaud the right hon. Gentleman's suggestion. Does he agree that the huge merit of that proposal is that it does not put service people early in their careers in a position where, having bought early because they so badly wanted to get on the housing ladder, they become more...

I applaud the right hon. Gentleman's suggestion. Does he agree that the huge merit of that proposal is that it does not put service people early in their careers in a position where, having bought early because they so badly wanted to get on the housing ladder, they become more...