RAF Centenary — House of Commons, 2018-11-26
Topic: Defense
Wayne David (Labour, Centre-left): It gives me great pleasure to respond to this excellent and on numerous occasions very moving debate, and to join colleagues in acknowledging and celebrating 100 years of the RAF, the world’s first independent air force. I am also pleased to echo what the Secretary of State said about Sir Stephen Hillier’s leadership of the RAF generally and about his consummate skill in organising the celebrations that have been taking place. For me, the highlight of the last few months was the flypast of aircraft old and new over the House of Commons and, more importantly, over Buckingham Palace. It was wonderful to see the large crowds of people out in the Mall paying their respects to the air force. It was especially pleasing to see large numbers of young people present, and I wish to reinforce the comments of my hon. Friend the Member for Feltham and Heston (Seema Malhotra) about the air cadets, of whom this country should be very proud indeed We also heard fine contributions from my hon. Friend the Member for East Lothian (Martin Whitfield) and the hon. Members for Torbay (Kevin Foster) and for Strangford (Jim Shannon). The Chairman of the Select Committee, the right hon. Member for New Forest East (Dr Lewis), made the point that it was important to acknowledge the role that key personalities and individuals have played in the history of the RAF. A number of Members have referred to close relatives, including the hon. Members for Sleaford and North Hykeham (Dr Johnson), for Stafford (Jeremy Lefroy) and for Witney (Robert Courts). The hon. Member for Beckenham (Bob Stewart) referred to his father, a distinguished squadron leader who gave so much for his country I, too, should like to refer briefly to my father. David Haydn David was not highly commended or given many medals, but he nevertheless made a huge contribution to the war effort. He was an engineer on Lancaster bombers and served much of the war in the far east. It is important to remember that thousands of people like him—women and men—made vital contributions to our war effort in a whole host of different ways I am also pleased to be a member of the RAF section of the armed forces parliamentary scheme. Like other Members here, I pay tribute to the work of Vasco. Those Members who are in the scheme will know exactly who I am talking about. Although I have been in the scheme for only a few weeks, I have learned a great deal about the working of the RAF. I have been extremely impressed by the kit, the stations, the organisation and, above all else, the people I have met and their unstinting commitment to the work of the RAF and the defence of this country. As we have heard, the RAF has a long and proud tradition, but it is also important to look to the future. I am pleased that the Government have produced a combat air strategy, which was published in July this year. This comes at an important time. We will see the first of the new, fifth-generation Lightning F-35 aircraft coming into service in the new year. As we know, they will replace the ageing Tornado GR4 aircraft in March 2019. Those F-35s will partner and complement the Typhoon until 2040. It is important to have a long-term perspective, and that is something that the RAF teaches us I am also pleased that the Tempest project has been recognised as a vital part of the forward projection of the RAF. A number of partners have been stated by BAE Systems and the Ministry of Defence, including countries such as Turkey, but we should not forget that, as the project develops, it will become essential to have a close working relationship with the French and the Germans, irrespective of what happens with Brexit. We need to remember that the Typhoon has been a big European success story, of which we have been an essential part, and I hope that that European co-operation will continue to be a central part of the RAF’s work. Europe is also important for defence generally. We have heard today about the Galileo project, and although the negotiations with our partners in Europe appear to have been successful, we need to be mindful of how much it would cost for us to go it alone in the future. Co-operation will have to continue with our allies, both in Europe and, critically, in NATO It is important to recognise that the RAF has been enormously successful in its recent work in Syria and Iraq, with many successful sorties. I pay tribute, in particular, to the professionalism with which it conducts its work, ensuring that airstrikes are carried out, as far as is humanly possible, with pinpoint accuracy. I am also pleased that, in our own backyard, with the situation in central and eastern Europe, we see the RAF playing a prominent role, alongside our NATO allies, to ensure that any potential Russian threat is thwarted It is important to take this opportunity also to express some concerns. One of our concerns is about personnel, which the hon. Member for Glasgow South (Stewart Malcolm McDonald) discussed in his speech. There is currently a deficit of 6.4% against the RAF’s staff target—full-time trained staff of the RAF currently number 30,070, but the figure set out in the 2015 strategic defence and security review is 31,750. That is a cause of concern. The situation might not be as bad as it is in the Army and the Navy, but the number is significantly below what it should be. It is also concerning that, according to the most recent armed forces continuous attitude survey, for 2018, only 41% of RAF personnel describe themselves as satisfied with service life in general, and only 32% report having high morale. We all know why morale is not as high as it should be Our second concern is about equipment, particularly the replacement of Sentry, the RAF’s airborne warning and control system aircraft. The concern is that the Ministry of Defence is having single-source discussions, with one company, Boeing, for its E-7 Wedgetail aircraft. The concern has been expressed by the Defence Committee, and it is shared by the Opposition. Our concern is essentially that there is a lack of openness and basic competition. Of course, in some circumstances, it is not appropriate to have competition, but in many circumstances it is entirely appropriate, and this is a case in point. It would be far better if we could see what the options are and then decide what the best one is. I would welcome any assurances from the Minister on future single-source contracts and on how exactly the MOD will do these things in future I conclude by paying tribute once again to the RAF in this extremely important year. In his overview of the defence combat strategy, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Hillier made absolutely clear what the RAF’s mission has been historically, what it is today and what it will be in the future. He stated that the RAF’s mission is to provide: "An agile, adaptable and capable air force that, person for person, is second to none, and that makes a decisive air power contribution in support of the UK Defence Mission" I think that is a good summation of what the RAF should be about, is about and will continue to be about.