Originally Posted by
Heathrow Harry
In parliament yesterday Defence Sec refused to comment on the three options for cuts or on timescale for Defence Review but staed his priorities were:-
1 the defence of Europe
2. The permanent 4 boat deterrent
3. Building a successful Carrier based strike force
What he actually said was this :
Although the detail must wait until after the NSCR concludes, I can assure the House that as long as I am Defence Secretary we will develop and sustain the capabilities necessary to maintain continuous at-sea nuclear deterrence, a carrier force that can strike anywhere around the globe and the armed forces necessary to protect the north Atlantic and Europe; and we will continue to work with our NATO allies. The Prime Minister, the Chancellor and I will be doing all we can to ensure that we have a sustainable budget, so that we can deliver the right capabilities for our armed forces.
Just to provide context on emphasis. He also added this :
I
think that all Government Members recognise the importance of making sure that we maintain conventional forces, and the fact that we have to have a continuous at-sea nuclear deterrent; but we cannot have one and not the other. We have to ensure that we have that ability so that, if we are in a point of conflict, there is deterrence at so very many levels. That is why having robust armed forces—the Army, Navy and Air Force—is so incredibly vital.
None of which guarantees any money, obvs.