Speeches by Roome.

“Minister, NATO is mentioned over 180 times throughout the SDR; it is like a golden thread through everything that we are doing. Are we really, truly committed to the principle of NATO first for our personnel? If we are, when will we recognise and actively promote NATO service as a career-enhancing opportunity, rather t…”

“So what steps are being taken to ensure that serving with NATO is seen as an asset for promotion, professional development and leadership, and that it is properly valued in promotion and career progression decisions? There are not so many high-ranking officers in all the services who have spent a great deal of time in …”

“Just to wrap up, the point that I was making was exactly what Mr Twigg was saying: do you think that some of our NATO vacancies are due to people thinking that the roles are going to affect their career progression? How do you propose to make those postings more attractive and prioritise them, so that people know that …”

“I look forward to getting some data from you—if you could tell us where you are on the statistics—so that when the Secretary of State is back in front of us in future, we have some metrics to work with.”

“Perhaps we should have talked about this first; I am very passionate about it. We can talk about all the capabilities, readiness and everything else, but at the heart of this are our people—the people who serve, and those in the defence industry. That is very important. Last time you appeared before the Committee, in N…”

“The SDR says that people are the essential part and project of defence transformation. It talks about transformation in the SDR. What kinds of skills will the Armed Forces need more of in the decade to come—and what will they need less of?”

“I was not going to ask you a question on that, Secretary of State, but you mentioned it. We offered the RAF engineers something like £15,000 one year and £15,000 the next year to retain them. That is a sticking plaster, isn’t it? Long term, what is the MOD doing so that we can actually retain those skills and attract p…”

“I do not mean how they would see it. I am just asking how we are addressing it in the meantime so we will not be like that in two years’ time.”

“Secretary of State, from one Yorkshireman to another—you know how we talk bold—can you be bold in your reply, and tell me the date that the defence industrial strategy will be published? Lots of people and businesses out there want it to say things that will improve the internal workings of the Ministry of Defence, aro…”

“Defence Secretary, you never said that when you were in Wakefield. I know you were born in Wakefield; what would your father have said to you if you came back and said that to him? He would have said, “Hang on, that is not an answer, son.” Would you say before recess or not? Will we get it before recess? Can you be bol…”

“I am really happy to join this debate, which is not only amusing, but very educational. For me, it is a matter of great concern for this country to conserve the water supply we have. Does the hon. Member therefore agree with me that floating solar stops the evaporation of water because it avoids direct sunlight hitting…”

“I welcome the Minister’s opening speech; as a member of the Defence Committee, I look forward to scrutinising the detail of his remarks. I wish to say a brief word of thanks to the Royal Marines Association, the Royal British Legion, SSAFA, the Veterans Charity and many others that all do good work in my constituency o…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for securing the debate. Patients in Lynton, one of the remotest communities in North Devon, will soon have access to a GP, but that only happened because of a spirited campaign by local patients. Does he agree that if we are relying on an active community to highlight gaps in provision, it will …”

“I thank the Minister for agreeing to visit North Devon district hospital very shortly, and I look forward to welcoming her to my constituency. Despite some welcome extra repairs under the estates safety fund, that hospital now faces many years of make do and mend. What provision have the Government put aside for those …”

“I thank the hon. Member for Isle of Wight East (Joe Robertson) for securing this debate, which is important to my constituents in North Devon. I will briefly raise the case of a brave young man from North Devon. His name is Oscar, he is 14 years old, and he recently saved the life of a man who got into trouble in the s…”

“And potential grey zone activities as well, which we see with the sub-threshold?”

“As part of that diplomacy we have the Arctic Council, to which you alluded earlier. How important is that in this context?”

“Finally, I turn to Dr Rogers for a one-minute answer, if possible, because we will finish at 12.30 pm.”

“First, to focus on defence and security in the Arctic and the High North, the SDR obviously put its spin on that yesterday and mentioned Atlantic Bastion—our version, not the Russian one. Could you elaborate on the main defence and security challenges you see in the High North?”

“Let us turn to the elephant in the room. I would love your synopsis. How critical is the role of the United States in shaping NATO’s strategy and security operations in the High North? How do you see the US’s defence posture shaping what is happening, particularly in that region?”