Speeches by Healey.

“It is clear we did not have the full facts in the lead-up to decisions about the initial operating capability. That IOC has been withdrawn. The Army is no longer in charge of this programme. A new senior responsible officer, SRO, is now in place. I have been clear that we must back it or scrap it. The work is being don…”

“First, we will set a new benchmark and that will be shared with the Committee. To be fair to us, Mr Chairman, when the Committee has asked for briefings in private and with a degree of confidentiality, we have always tried to respond.”

“I absolutely applaud the work that you personally are doing on this territory; the way that you are championing fresh ideas like the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank. One thing that I know you will have noted—Mr Chairman, you will see the results before too long—is we set up a defence finance investment group, som…”

“There is an understanding and that understanding is growing. The recognition of its importance is underlined by this advisory group we set up and by the fact that the Chancellor and I are working very closely on this and have been over the last 18 months. We work with the CBI specialist group and a task force that repo…”

“It is partly a recognition in the investor community—the banks—of the discussions we have just been having in the last half an hour; that actually there is a national and an allied challenge with defence and security that is not just a matter for the armed forces and defence. We are moving away from a period where inve…”

“That is a really big risk if we do not do our procurement better and in different ways and if we do not leverage the investments that I believe are potentially there, including foreign direct investment into the defence industry in this country, which hit record levels last year at £1.4 billion. These are all big oppor…”

“I did not, no.”

“First, you encouraged me to read their evidence. But part of my mission as Defence Secretary—before the election, at the election and since—has been to draw attention to the threats we face, to argue that this is a new era for defence and that steps need to be taken. The Government have demonstrated a seriousness for t…”

“I am sorry, that is exactly what the Foreign Secretary did when we made the decision that next year we would switch 0.2% of GDP out of direct overseas aid into defence. That was a decision that the Government took: very clearly a down arrow in a different path. If you look at the decisions that the Chancellor made in h…”

“I will call out the Putin threats to us when I think those are needed. It is part of priming the national conversation that we have discussed before. It is part of treating the public properly, making sure that they are aware of some threats that we face. Should we do more in disclosing to Parliament and trying to ensu…”

“There have certainly been commitments that we have made in Defence that reflect exactly that.”

“I can answer for the Defence Department as Defence Secretary. I can try to get you answers from other Departments. I am not here to and I cannot, I am afraid, answer for what other Government Departments have done.”

“The Government have risk registers, they have threat assessments and they publish what they can of that as a regular element. This House, this Committee and the Intelligence Security Committee play a part in exactly that sort of national conversation and that awareness-building of what we are facing.”

“That is a good question. Rather like reform, I do not see there is a point of success or failure. I do not see a point of completion, particularly as we know that the threats and the challenges that we are facing are evolving the whole time. You are quite right to challenge me and the Government on this important area.…”

“You have been positive about the way that we have been able to do that to this Committee and there were complaints that the previous Committee did not get that information. If it is a briefing that the Committee is looking for on the way that we are trying to change what the permanent secretary describes as a strategic…”

“No, no, the serious fundamental point here is that if a country is stepping up to the challenge that Mr Norman is quite rightly outlining here, that is a challenge that is defined by the threats we face and the security environment. That does not stop changing, evolving or reach a point where it is done, whether or not…”

“I take that point and I am glad you see it had that impact, Mr Roome. I thought it was an important signal to Putin as well as information that the public deserved. And the answer is yes, we should do that and I will do that when it is important to call it out. I will do that because I want the public to be as well-inf…”

“Yes, I am able to implement my priorities. I have a lot of confidence in the leadership we now have in place in defence. No, I am not being prevented from doing that and I am not sure that I recognise the description of some deeply resistant, hostile, deep state. That is working against the interests of democratically …”

“Two things, if I may. First, the very detailed military planning that the UK and France have led with over 200 military planners and conversations—the latest coalition of the willing had 39 nations involved—means that if there is a peace deal, we will be ready from day one to move to help secure that peace in Ukraine. …”

“That was a headline figure. I gave about a 30% increase in Russian vessels intruding and active in wider UK waters; you would not expect me to give a detailed breakdown of those in public. The general may want to add something on the military front of that. The main point is not just that the level of Russian attacks i…”