§ 25. Mr. FrancoisTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for increasing the funding of UK homeland defence. [24487]
§ Mr. IngramMy right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence informed the House on 4 October that the Ministry of Defence would be conducting work designed to ensure that we have the right concepts, forces and capabilities to deal with the kind of asymmetric threat that we saw on 11 September.
This work is on-going and is addressing, among a wide range of issues, the balance between the contributions that the armed forces make to home defence and countering threats abroad. A key part of this work is exploring the role that the armed forces, including the reserves, have in defending and protecting the United Kingdom. But it should be recognised that the lead for domestic security lies with the civil authorities, and with the police in particular. The armed forces, of course, already provide assistance to the civil authorities in a range of ways.
We will need to examine fully the overall priorities for tackling terrorism through military and other means including intelligence, diplomacy, humanitarian and aid policies and domestic responses to the threat. Funding issues will be addressed during the spending review, which will conclude in the summer.