Your Lordships will be aware that my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Defence will shortly update the other place on recent events in the Red Sea. I will not pre-empt that Statement. While on patrol in the Red Sea on 16 December 2023, HMS “Diamond” shot down an uncrewed aerial vehicle which was targeting merchant shipping. This is the first surface-to-air engagement by a Royal Navy vessel since 1991. The Houthis have repeatedly carried out dangerous and destabilising attacks against shipping and continue to do so. Our aim remains to de-escalate tension, but we will not hesitate to defend lives and the free flow of commerce in the face of such continued threats.

My Lords, the National Audit Office’s report on the equipment plan states that it does not consider the value for money of the MoD’s equipment expenditure or of the specific projects mentioned; nor does it comment on the policy choices that the department makes to develop a plan that meets its future needs. While the National Audit Office report recognises the significant impact that global headwinds and high inflation have had on UK defence, it does not and could not accurately reflect the current or future state of the Armed Forces equipment plan, given that it pre-dates the publication of the defence Command Paper refresh.

My Lords, the Government continue to take the threat of the IRGC very seriously and to condemn its actions. The Government will always consider the full range of powers available—including our robust counterterrorism powers, such as the proscription tool, where appropriate—to address the threat posed by Iran and the IRGC.

My Lords, the Ministry of Defence considers all available options when disposing of military vehicles which are no longer required. Vehicles which are assessed as being beyond economic repair are unlikely to be attractive acquisitions for our NATO allies.

My Lords, the Atlas A400M is the next generation of air mobility aircraft. It is a more modern and capable aircraft than the Hercules C-130J, offering the opportunity to approach those tasks carried out by the Hercules in a different manner. Compared with Hercules, Atlas has an improved lift capacity and range. It is increasingly capable in the tactical role and has proven operational credibility in the airlift role.

My Lords, the integrated review has set the British Army on a course of exciting transformation. Cancelling the Warrior capability sustainment programme,

rather than spending taxpayers’ money on upgrading an ageing legacy capability, has enabled reinvestment of resources to support Army modernisation under Future Soldier. The Army’s current capabilities, which include Warrior, will remain effective until new concepts and capabilities are introduced into service throughout the remainder of the decade.

My Lords, Defence is supporting the refresh of the integrated review. We must ensure that the UK remains ready to deter adversaries in the new era of strategic competition. Taking lessons learned from the past year, we will continue to modernise, build resilience and promote prosperity both domestically and across our global partner network. Any specific policy changes will be determined once the update to the integrated review is concluded. We expect this work to be completed ahead of the Treasury’s Spring Statement.

The UK Government does not have any plans to withdraw from the Refugee Convention.

As the Prime Minister set out in his statement to the House of Commons on 13 December, the Government is determined to tackle the misuse of our modern slavery system. We continue to examine the case for legislative changes to improve the operation of the system and we will make a further announcement in due course.

This Government remains committed to workers’ rights and enforcement but there is also real pressure on parliamentary time. We are reviewing what this means for the creation of the Single Enforcement Body which would be a significant organisational change and requires primary legislation. In the meantime, we continue to invest significantly in the existing labour market enforcement bodies and are working with the Director of Labour Market Enforcement to provide strategic oversight of the system as a whole.

The Government is supporting legislation to enhance workers’ rights. This includes backing five Private Members’ Bills on neonatal leave and pay, pregnancy and maternity discrimination, flexible working, carers’ leave, and tipping.

My Lords, the recent user-validation trials to assess the effectiveness of the modifications proposed by General Dynamics to address the noise and vibration concerns over Ajax are complete, so the department can now safely move to the next stage of testing: reliability growth trials. These are designed to test both the reliability of the vehicle and its installed systems to ensure a final-build standard that meets the department’s demanding standards for this new platform.

Modern Slavery now falls under the remit of The Rt.Hon Robert Jenrick as the Minister of State for Migration.

There are close links between modern slavery and migration. About two thirds of potential victims are foreign nationals, and often potential victims have ongoing engagement with the immigration system so having one minister overseeing both modern slavery and migration will help to ensure the interaction works effectively.

The Government remains committed to tackling the heinous crime of modern slavery and supporting victims, regardless of policy portfolio.

There are close links between modern slavery and migration; about two thirds of potential victims are foreign nationals, and often potential victims have ongoing engagement with the immigration system.

While a Ministerial portfolio hopes to group together related policies, there will be elements of complex policy areas which fall across multiple portfolios. Home Office Ministers work together on complex policy issues.

The Government remains committed to tackling the heinous crime of modern slavery and supporting victims, regardless of policy portfolio.

There are close links between modern slavery and migration; about two thirds of potential victims are foreign nationals, and often potential victims have ongoing engagement with the immigration system.

While a Ministerial portfolio hopes to group together related policies, there will be elements of complex policy areas which fall across multiple portfolios. Home Office Ministers work together on complex policy issues.

My Lords, the UK has worked in close partnership with Estonia to ensure that our force posture is correctly calibrated for the current security climate. We will continue to collaborate with Estonia on an enduring basis to implement the commitments offered by the UK at the NATO Madrid summit, and to ensure that our troop levels are commensurate with Estonia’s NATO security needs. The implementation of our summit commitments will increase the overall capability of our forces in Estonia.

My Rt Hon friend the Home Secretary will set out the Government’s plans for modern slavery legislation in due course.

My Rt Hon friend the Home Secretary will set out the Government’s plans for modern slavery legislation in due course.

The Government remains committed to tackling the scourge of modern slavery.

Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combatting trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims (the “EU Trafficking Directive”) was adopted on 5 April 2011.

The Nationality and Borders Act provides legislative clarity to victims and decision makers on victims’ rights, including the entitlement to a recovery period and the circumstances in which confirmed victims may be granted permission to stay.

Section 68 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 disapplied the EU Trafficking Directive insofar as it was incompatible with provisions made by that Act.

The provisions in Section 68 aim to ensure that if there is any provision within the EU Directive that operates on the same subject as the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, whether support for victims or otherwise, there is no confusion as to which applies.

The Government believes that that if there is any provision within the Directive that operates on the same subject as the 2022 Act, whether support for victims or otherwise, it is right that people are not confused as to which applies. More broadly, the Government does not believe that any of the Directive’s provisions have been given direct effect by a domestic court and so does not have effect as retained EU law.

This provision does not result in a diminution below the standards laid down in the EU Trafficking Directive, nor does section 68 remove any entitlements from victims. This legal clarification will not have an impact on victim identification, protection and support provided through the National Referral Mechanism.

The Government remains committed to tackling the scourge of modern slavery.

Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combatting trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims (the “EU Trafficking Directive”) was adopted on 5 April 2011.

The Nationality and Borders Act provides legislative clarity to victims and decision makers on victims’ rights, including the entitlement to a recovery period and the circumstances in which confirmed victims may be granted permission to stay.

Section 68 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 disapplied the EU Trafficking Directive insofar as it was incompatible with provisions made by that Act.

The provisions in Section 68 aim to ensure that if there is any provision within the EU Directive that operates on the same subject as the Nationality and Borders Act 2022, whether support for victims or otherwise, there is no confusion as to which applies.

The Government believes that that if there is any provision within the Directive that operates on the same subject as the 2022 Act, whether support for victims or otherwise, it is right that people are not confused as to which applies. More broadly, the Government does not believe that any of the Directive’s provisions have been given direct effect by a domestic court and so does not have effect as retained EU law.

This provision does not result in a diminution below the standards laid down in the EU Trafficking Directive, nor does section 68 remove any entitlements from victims. This legal clarification will not have an impact on victim identification, protection and support provided through the National Referral Mechanism.

The Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (“the Act”) achieved Royal Assent on 28th April 2022.

The provisions set out in section 87(3) and (4) of the Act came into force immediately upon Royal Assent. The provisions set out in section 87(5) of the Act came into force on 28^th June 2022. The provisions listed in Schedule 1 of the Act (Commencement No. 1, Transitional and Saving Provisions) came into force on 28^th June 2022 and the provisions listed in the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (Commencement No. 2) Regulations 2022 came into force on 24^th August 2022.

Implementation of the Act to date has been through the following pieces of secondary legislation:

• The Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (Commencement, Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2022
• The Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (Commencement No. 2) Regulations 2022
• The Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2022
• The Slavery and Human Trafficking (Definition of Victim) Regulations 2022
• The British Nationality (General, British Overseas Territories and Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2022
• The Terrorism Act 2000 (Code of Practice for Examining Officers and Review Officers) Order 2022
  

There have also been changes to the Immigration Rules made during 2022 in relation to the implementation of the Act.

The remaining measures will be implemented over the coming months and into next year.