§ 14. Mr. Trotterasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will publish in the Official Report the NATO communiqué issued on 19th March on his planned defence cuts; and whether he will give details of the extent to which the United Kingdom's maritime capabilities in the Eastern Atlantic and Channel areas referred to in the communiqué, are to decline.
§ Mr. MasonYes, Sir. I will arrange for the text of the communiqué to be published in the Official Report. As regards our maritime capabilities in the Eastern Atlantic and Channel areas, with the exception of a reduction in the numbers of conventional submarines our planned contribution to these areas, which the Government regard as crucial to our national security, will be unaffected by the defence review.
§ Mr. TrotterWill the right hon. Gentleman explain why the communiqué expressed special concern at the decline of our forces in these areas? Will he advise us whether he feels that a worthwhile addition to our strength has been made by committing a civilian-manned auxiliary with two helicopters—namely, RFA "Engadine"—and a small number of 20-year-old Canberra aircraft, which can only be described as clapped out?
§ Mr. MasonIt is a pity that the hon. Gentleman is so scathing and snide on defence matters when he supposedly has some knowledge of the subject. If he reads the communiqué and the White Paper he will know that we supply 70 per cent. of the maritime effort of all NATO in the Eastern Atlantic. Indeed, NATO is greatly dependent upon us. Secondly, although the hon. Gentleman mentioned RFA "Engadine" he also knows, because of representations made to us by NATO, that we are converting HMS "Hermes" to undertake an antisubmarine rô le. Thirdly, we are going ahead with modernising and re-equipping Nimrod aircraft for their maritime patrol ô ole in the Eastern Atlantic.
§ Mr. YoungerWill the right hon. Gentleman confirm that virtually all the comment upon his defence review from NATO has been deeply critical of the details contained in the review? Bearing in mind the extreme uncertainty that at present exists throughout the whole of the southern flank, and particularly in Portugal, Greece and Turkey, will he produce to the House a sensible strategic or military reason for reducing our contribution in this area at the present time?
§ Mr. MasonThe hon. Gentleman must take note of the original Question, which refers to the Atlantic. In that area we have been undertaking the major role, and we shall continue to do so. It is true that our NATO allies said they were seriously disquieted by our review, but they have affirmed that we have not gone so far as to start an unravelling within Western Europe.
Following is the communiqué issued on 19th March 1975:In accordance with the usual NATO practice, the United Kingdom Government, having reached provisional conclusions on their Defence Review, initiated the process of consultation with their NATO allies in December 1974. The implications of the changes proposed have been assessed by the NATO military authorities and there have been several exchanges of views in the Defence Planning Committee of the Alliance. These took place against the background of a statement that the British Government regarded their plan to reduce defence expenditure to 4½ per cent. of GNP by the middle 1980s as a firm decision.The Alliance welcomes the assurance that NATO commitments remain the first charge on British defence resources; that no reductions are envisaged in advance of an MBFR 264 agreement in the forces deployed in the Central Region; and that the United Kingdom will maintain the effectiveness of its present strategic and tactical nuclear contribution to NATO.The Alliance has nevertheless expressed its disquiet at the scale of the reductions proposed and their effect on NATO's conventional defence vis-à -vis the increasing capability of the Warsaw Pact. The changes of special concern are: the reduction of reinforcement capability in the Northern and Southern Regions; the removal of naval and air forces from the Mediterranean area; and the decline in maritime capabilities in the Eastern Atlantic and Channel areas.The Alliance is pleased to note, however, that in response to its representations, the British Government have announced in today's White Paper their willingness to introduce certain compensatory measures to alleviate the more damaging features of the proposals, although the total resources allocated to defence will not be increased. It attaches particular importance to the undertakings to continue to participate in NATO maritime exercises in the Mediterranean and to maintain certain reinforcement options for the Southern Region. It also accepts the British offer to continue Allied consultation about other measures aimed at mitigating the effects of the reductions.The Alliance has urged the United Kingdom to keep its new programme under review, in consultation with its Allies and in the light of developments in the economic, political and security situation as they arise. It hopes that the British Government will continue to judge the scale and nature of their military contribution to NATO not in financial terms alone, but in terms of its total value to deterrence and defence throughout the Alliance