HC Deb 26 January 1982 vol 16 cc733-4
4. Mr. Hooley

asked the Secretary of State for Defence in which countries or territories outside Europe the United Kingdom is maintaining military garrisons or units of the Armed Forces, whether Army, Navy or Air Force, including forces deployed in accordance with United Nations resolutions.

The Minister of State for the Armed Forces (Mr. Peter Blaker)

There are British military garrisons stationed in Hong Kong, Belize, Brunei and the Falkland Islands. There are small administrative, or similar, detachments in Bermuda, the Bahamas, Diego Garcia, Malaysia, Canada and Kenya. We also have small teams of training and advisory personnel on loan or secondment to the Armed Forces of about 30 countries outside Europe. We provide a guard for the United Nations Command in Korea.

Mr. Hooley

Does the Minister agree that, apart from supporting United Nations peacekeeping operations, this world-wide scatter of military activities is a delusion of grandeur not shared by anyone outside the Tory Party? Would it not be more sensible to deploy the resources at home for education and health and recreating jobs?

Mr. Blaker

It is easy to say that health, education and so on are important, but if we neglect our defences and those of our allies, as a former Labour Secretary of State for Defence said, we shall be left with nothing but a heap of cinders. The garrisons to which I referred are in countries for which we have direct responsibility. Most of the other countries to which I referred have very small numbers of British personnel—perhaps two or three—who are there for particular reasons, such as looking after our training needs.

Mr. Alan Clark

Does my hon. Friend agree that certain factors—such as long-term strategic considerations, Service morale and humanitarian obligations to the people of the territories concerned—have to be divorced from the cold statistics of the MOD balance sheet? Will he suggest to our right hon. Friend that one instance of this is HMS "Endurance" and our demonstrative will to defend our interests and those of the population of the Falkland Islands?

Mr. Blaker

There is a later question on the Order Paper on this subject. I ask my hon. Friend to wait for that.

The answer to my hon. Friend's general question is that our forces in the countries that I mentioned are there at the request of the countries concerned. We believe that that is in our interests as well as in theirs.

Dr. McDonald

What proportions of our GDP are spent on NATO defences and on other commitments? Do we not spend more on our NATO commitments than any other member of NATO?

Mr. Blaker

The answer to the hon. Lady's last question is "No". We spend a lower proportion than the United States. The total cost of the garrisons to which I referred is about £60 million a year. The cost of the other elements, which are very small, is much less.

Mr. Buck

Does not my hon. Friend's last answer show the enormous contribution that we are making to the maintenance of peace on a world-wide basis? What is our contribution to the United Nation's forces in the Cyprus area, where we have a substantial commitment and do excellent work?

Mr. Blaker

I did not refer to Cyprus because Cyprus regards itself as being inside Europe. We make a valuable contribution there to UNFICYP. We have about 4, 000 of our own forces in the sovereign base areas.

Back to