Following the Defence Secretary’s statement on the publication of the refreshed defence Command Paper, James Sunderland seeks reassurance that the MOD remains committed to a fully deployable, scalable and sustainable armoured division at readiness to be able to fulfil all the expectations placed upon it, both by our NATO allies and our own defence tasks.
James Sunderland (Bracknell) (Con)
I thank my right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary for his statement and for his fantastic service over many years. Given the current tempo of commitments faced by HM forces worldwide, I am clear, as a former capability planner, that quantity has a quality of its own. It is also incumbent upon the MOD to fulfil all the expectations placed upon it, both by our NATO allies and our own defence tasks. Will my right hon. Friend confirm that, post refresh, the MOD remains committed to a fully deployable, scalable and sustainable armoured division at readiness?
The Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ben Wallace)
Yes, we are committed to that, but we have also been honest about the time needed to get to being able to do that.