Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)
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Monday Volume 540 20 February 2012 No. 265 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Monday 20 February 2012 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2012 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Parliamentary Click-Use Licence, available online through The National Archives website at www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/information-management/our-services/parliamentary-licence-information.htm Enquiries to The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU; e-mail: [email protected] 587 20 FEBRUARY 2012 588 clearly some shortfalls were identified. I must say that House of Commons the finger must point primarily at those European members of NATO that fail to spend the target 2% of their GDP Monday 20 February 2012 on defence. We will be looking to them to contribute the additional resources required to make good the shortfalls. The House met at half-past Two o’clock Mr James Arbuthnot (North East Hampshire) (Con): I am delighted to hear that my right hon. Friend is close to balancing the books. Does that mean that we can PRAYERS look forward to an early set of accounts that are not qualified by the auditors, so that we can have confidence [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] in what the books say. Mr Hammond: Speaking candidly, I can say to my right hon. Friend that it will be a number of years yet, Oral Answers to Questions as the Department has made clear, before it is able to get an unqualified set of accounts. As Labour Members will know, that is largely due to a legacy problem associated with MOD inventory and the large quantity DEFENCE of stock items held in a form that the National Audit Office is not able adequately to audit. A solution is The Secretary of State was asked— being put in place—a new IT system will resolve this problem over the next couple of years—and it should Departmental Budget then be possible to get unqualified accounts. 1. Nadhim Zahawi (Stratford-on-Avon) (Con): What Angus Robertson (Moray) (SNP): Scottish taxpayers steps he is taking to balance his Department’s budget. contribute more than £3 billion a year to the MOD, but [95277] according to its own statistics, nearly one third of that is not spent in Scotland. Why is that? The Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Philip Hammond): The Ministry of Defence is undertaking its annual Mr Hammond: The last time I checked, most of the budget-setting process, in which I am personally engaged. people we were needing to defend the UK against were I am increasingly confident that we will achieve a sustainable not in Scotland. I think that Scottish taxpayers, like and balanced defence budget for the first time in a taxpayers in the rest of the UK, would expect that we decade or more, and I hope to be in a position to make deploy our military forces and structure our military an announcement to the House shortly. posture to deal with the threats that we are facing. Nadhim Zahawi: I thank my right hon. Friend for Contracts (Small Businesses) that answer and for the good news that we will be balancing the budget. Will he say a little more about 2. Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con): What research and development co-operation with France on steps he is taking to help small businesses secure more the unmanned fighter drone and on other matters? How contracts with his Department. [95279] will that affect our ability to balance the budget? The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence Mr Hammond: I am grateful to my hon. Friend for (Peter Luff): Innovative and efficient smaller businesses his question. As he will know, I was with the Prime make an important contribution to defence, beyond the Minister in Paris last Friday, when we confirmed that obvious benefits to the wider economy. That is why the we will take forward the assessment phase of the medium “National Security Through Technology” White Paper altitude long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle with sets out a wide range of measures to make defence and the French. Clearly, we can co-operate on many areas security procurement as accessible as possible to even with France, a country with a broadly similar industrial the smallest of enterprises. I attach particular importance base and defence budget to our own. Such co-operation to the establishment of a new small and medium-sized will be to the benefit of both countries, and I intend to enterprises forum, which meets regularly under my explore all those opportunities. chairmanship to discuss and inform subsequent action on issues of concern to small businesses. Hugh Bayley (York Central) (Lab): The military action over Libya showed that among the European members Julian Smith: What steps are the Minister and his of NATO there was a shortage of precision guided Department taking to engage with Britain’s 3,000 defence missiles, of air-to-air refuelling capacity and of airborne SMEs much earlier in the procurement process? drones to identify targets. Clearly we need to acquire more capacity in those fields, so how sure is the Secretary Peter Luff: First, I congratulate my hon. Friend on of State that his budget will enable the UK to play its the part he plays in the Skipton and Ripon Enterprise part in building a stronger European capacity? Group. I know that he takes a close interest in SMEs in general and I am grateful for his interest in defence Mr Hammond: The hon. Gentleman correctly identifies SMEs. We are taking a wide range of steps to achieve one of the lessons from the Libya campaign. Much of precisely what he asks for, and the SME forum is but what came out of that campaign was positive, but one example of that. He is particularly interested in the 589 Oral Answers20 FEBRUARY 2012 Oral Answers 590 use of pre-qualification questionnaires. Their use is reducing the total numbers for the purchase of the joint being minimised for procurements of under £100,000, strike fighter, but they have changed the profile of those and we are working to simplify or even eliminate them. purchases. Other partner nations have indicated that We are already adopting the new core questionnaire, they will reduce their offtake. That is likely to have which is standardised across government. Many steps implications for JSF prices, particularly those acquired have been taken to encourage SMEs to engage earlier in the early stages of the process, which is when this and more effectively with the Department, but if he has country intends to acquires its JSFs. We are watching any ideas I would welcome them. those implications carefully, and I am happy to talk to the hon. Lady separately about the implications for Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab): A the UK. written statement on the White Paper that was recently published indicates that the Government will no longer Medical Emergency Response Team (Helmand) prioritise UK suppliers when buying defence equipment. For the sake of small companies, and for BAE Systems 3. Mrs Madeleine Moon (Bridgend) (Lab): How many workers at Brough, 850 of whom face redundancy, times the medical emergency response team has been ought we not to have a debate on the Floor of the called out in Helmand province in the last year. [95280] House about that change in Government policy? The Minister for the Armed Forces (Nick Harvey): Peter Luff: I have to say to the hon. Lady that such The UK Forward Aeromed capability, commonly referred matters of debate are largely for the Backbench Business to as the medical emergency response team, has been Committee to determine. No one would relish more called out around 480 times in Helmand province in the than me an opportunity to explain the defence White past year. As air evacuation assets like this are shared Paper and the gross misrepresentation that she has just between coalition nations, not all call-outs will have given. I would welcome such a debate, and I hope that it been for UK personnel, as the team provides medical happens. evacuation for UK and other international security assistance force troops, as well as Afghan security forces Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD): The Minister and civilians when appropriate. solicits ideas on this front. The Ministry of Defence necessarily requires strict security credentials from its Mrs Moon: I am sure that the House will want to put business contractors, but that sponsorship can act as a on record its appreciation for the dedication and barrier to competition. Will the Minister consider giving professionalism of the members of the medical emergency new businesses wishing to seek contracts with his response team, many of whom are civilians who risk Department the opportunity to apply in advance for their lives helping personnel who have been injured. security clearance for their personnel entirely at their One of the issues I am greatly concerned about is the own cost to level that playing field? capacity to rescue people who may have suffered spinal injuries from heavily armoured vehicles, and whether Peter Luff: Actually, I think there is a widely shared appropriate rescue and cutting equipment and release misunderstanding in the SME community of the issues mechanisms for doors and roofs are available so that that it faces. I refer my hon. Friend to the box on when people are removed further damage to their spine page 61 of the White Paper, which explains in detail the is limited. Will the Minister confirm that such equipment security requirements and how the obstacles that I is available for MER teams? accept some small and medium enterprises think they have experienced can, in practice, be dealt with.