§ 13. Mr. Goodhewasked the Secretary of State for Defence what obligations and commitments abroad are being abandoned as a result of the defence cuts arising out of devaluation.
§ Mr. GoodhewIs not the Minister of Defence for Equipment aware that the Secretary of State for Defence said in the July White Paper that our obligations and commitments and our troops were at that time in balance? Was that statement quite untrue, or has the Secretary of State decided to expose our forces to quite unnecessary risks?
§ Mr. MasonMy right hon. Friend informed the House quite frankly that, because of the £100 million cut-back in planned expenditure, there may be marginal risks here and there. The hon. Gentleman asks if there has been any abandonment of commitments. I say, "No, Sir".
§ Mr. PowellAs the use of Aldabra, according to the Secretary of State, was necessary in the event of its being impossible to overfly certain countries, how can these commitments now be fulfilled?
§ Mr. MasonThere is another Question on the Order Paper about Aldabra, too. However, my right hon. Friend was quite frank and explained that this would certainly affect the flexibility of the force, especially if we wanted to use Aldabra for the Persian Gulf or for the South-about route to Singapore.
§ Mr. Michael FootDoes my hon. Friend's replies to this and to the previous Question mean that there is no major review of commitments taking place since devaluation? Is he saying that he and his Ministry have nothing to add about any proposal for a review of commitments since the debate of 27th November?