Speech by Minister for the Armed Forces at Global Air & Space Chiefs' Conference 2024

Minster for the Armed Forces, Luke Pollard, spoke today at the Global Air & Space Chiefs' Conference 2024.

When I say that I am delighted to speak to you today, it is not just because this is my first speech as a Minister. It is also because you, the people in this room, are the people who are going to be responsible for the biggest transformation of our Air Force and space capabilities that we need, not just in the UK, but across our Alliances as well.

Because whether you are a member of the armed forces, an international ally, or a partner in industry, you will know that our air, land and sea naval capabilities are all dependant on our ability to work together in space, and in cyber.

Satellites and cyber communications are intrinsic components of our command and control, our secure comms, our ISR and PNT capabilities, and our missile defence.

Yet for far too long, the Ministry of Defence and Government strategies have not given enough value to space and cyber that they should have. And neither have they given enough value to those people who work in them either.

If we are to get Britain's fighting forces fit to deter our adversaries, and defeat them if necessary, we must be ready for the profound step-changes in warfare that we are seeing in our increasingly fast-evolving, volatile, and contested world.

We need to be a truly integrated force, equipped for ‘all domain warfare'.

Multi domain integration is not enough.

I see MDI as a journey that takes us to a destination. That destination is all domain warfare.

Where to win we control space, cyber, electronic spectrums, as well as air, land and sea in a single joined up approach.

And that is the change that we are determined to bring to defence, to support those people in defence who are already working on that.

I will come back to that concept of All Domain Warfare in a moment, and the role we all have to play in realising it, but I'm first going to focus on the existing work of our air, space and cyber forces, and how the new Labour government's plans for defence can strengthen that work.

If we ever needed reminding about the outstanding work that our servicemen and women of our air, space and cyber forces do, then 2024 has given us plenty of examples.

From protecting UK and NATO airspace 24/7/365, or 366 as it will be in this leap year,

to operating seamlessly with allies to conduct precision strikes against Houthi sites in Yemen; intercepting Iranian missiles and drones launched against Israel.

From training Ukrainian F-16 pilots and lighting up the sky for the anniversary of D-Day to thwarting countless cyber attacks; getting crucial humanitarian aid into Gaza, and conducting major exercises with NATO, and our other allies around the world. Showing that NATO is joined-up, capable, and ready.

And they've also kept our comms systems and intelligence secure, and strengthened our alliances that help protect our national interests right round the globe.

It amounts to an impressive legacy from just 7 months' work. And I want to thank everyone who has served for their professionalism, and for everything they and you do to protect not just our country but our allies as well.

But the United Kingdom does not fight alone. We are proud of the NATO alliance. Proud to be the founding member. And my party is proud of the role we played in forging that alliance all those years ago.

Proud that it continues to grow with our new alliance partners in Sweden and Finland.

And proud to work seamlessly with so many allies around the world, many of whom are represented here today.

Now, I'm the son of a Royal Navy submariner, and a very proud Navy brat, and as an MP for my hometown in Plymouth, which is home to Devonport, the largest naval base in Western Europe, my experience of talking to Armed Forces personnel has gone from being a small child smuggled onto a submarine to have a look around, to attending Armed Forces Days up in Plymouth Hoe if you've seen them.

I know that when you speak to our Armed Forces personnel about their achievements, they're more than likely to say it was just ‘part of the day job'.

But as I've seen since being a kid, being a member of our Armed Forces is more than a day job.

It takes you away from your home and your loved ones and demands everything from you. It is the ultimate public service. And that's why, as the Minister for the Armed Forces, I will endeavour to always have your back.

But I have to level with you first. That does not mean that we will be able to do everything we want to as quickly as we'd like.

Over recent years, the new Defence Secretary, John Healey, and myself, have raised concerns about real term Government cuts, and its inability to fund existing plans.

I've raised concerns about force size and capabilities; about readiness and resilience; about the state of defence facilities and the appalling state of military housing that we ask our Armed Forces personnel and their families to live in; and about the state of retention and recruitment.

And regardless of how much I would like to be able to address all these challenges overnight, we know it will take time.

But the work of change has begun across Government and that includes in the Ministry of Defence.

The Prime Minister has laid out an ambitious, yet deliverable path, towards rebuilding our Armed Forces, built on public service and collaboration and a clear understanding that defence is the first duty of any Government.

And that started with the Strategic Defence Review, that he announced on Tuesday.

That review will be overseen by the Defence Secretary and led by former NATO Secretary General, Lord Robertson.

You don't need me to tell you that this is going to be a critical review for the Royal Air Force, for UK Space Command, for our partnerships with industry, and for the evolution of our air, space, and cyber capabilities.

Over the last year, drones and missiles fired by Houthis have terrorised international shipping. Putin has used them to terrorise our friends in Ukraine, and Iran has used them to attack Israel.

They have pushed the envelopes of what we consider modern warfare.

That means we have to look again at how we fight. How we strengthen air and missile defence, look at our counter-measures and get that right up the agenda.

As drones and technology reshape the battlefield, and satellites become increasingly central to warfare, if only in the public understanding of their role. The risk of cyber attacks continue.

The risks of undermining our institutions, our critical national infrastructure, our democracy continues.

The breadth of the threats we face, and the need to innovate at an ever-increasing pace, demands a fresh assessment of the state of our armed forces, the capabilities we need, and the resources that we have available. 

So you'll be hearing more from me and other ministers about a ‘one defence' approach, with truly integrated Services and capabilities, that we can prosecute all domain warfare.

It is integral to our ability to deter and integral to our ability to fight and win if we need to.

Our Strategic Defence Review will be an open and collaborative defence Review. And those who that have heard me speak before will know that I always give out homework.

And the homework I'm giving out to you is this: Please contribute.

Whether you are from the forces, industry, academia, or one of our allies: Please add your insights and expertise to that process.

So that we don't just bolster the front line – we do everything that underpins it as well.

From our skills base to our industrial resilience, and of course to our alliances.

That collaborative approach will mean that the Strategic Defence Review will report in the first half of 2025.

However, the work to strengthen our deterrence began on day one of getting elected.

For the international visitors: you go straight from a sports centre where you get announced as an MP at 4am in the morning, slightly bleary-eyed, into a department.

It's slightly a whirlwind time. But the work of change needs to start straight away.

That's why we have committed to increasing defence spending to 2.5% of GDP as soon as we can. We have committed to our nuclear ‘triple lock' – that's continuing out continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent, with our four new next generation ballistic missile carrying nuclear submarines being built in Barrow, and a commitment to all the future upgrades required to keep Britain and our NATO allies safe with those submarines.

And although there has been a change in Downing Street, let me reassure you as well that there will be no change in Britain's steadfast support for our friends in Ukraine.

Within 48 hours of being appointed, the Defence Secretary was in Odesa to pledge a new shipment of missiles and munitions to support Ukraine's fight. And he committed to President Zelensky to get crucial UK kit into Ukrainian hands within 100 days.

At the NATO Summit in Washington, the Prime Minister told President Zelenskyy that he would stick with Ukraine and provide £3 billion in military aid each year for as long as it takes for Ukraine to win.

Putin's illegal war has underlined the belief our government has in a ‘NATO first' defence policy.

And it has shone a light on shortcomings of our and many of our allies' stockpiles as well.

So we will provide leadership by boosting Britain's industrial capacity and resilience of our supply chains by aligning our defence industrial strategy more closely with our security priorities as well as our economic priorities, which will provide a boost for British jobs, industry, and our regions.

And we have also committed to look hard at procurement – to cut out waste, improve value for money, and bring greater urgency to our acquisition programmes.

And we have instigated important organisational reforms to improve military leadership and planning, with a new Military Strategic Headquarters, and a new National Armaments Director.

Whilst these domestic commitments and reforms are fundamental to strengthening our deterrence and our capabilities, our global alliances and partnerships are equally important to the security of our nation.

Our commitment to NATO is unshakable.

We must, and we will fulfil all our obligations as a member and strengthen Britain's leadership within the alliance.We will also seek to strengthen European security by negotiating a new security pact with the EU – seeking a new bilateral defence agreement with Germany, refreshing the Lancaster House agreement with France, and stronger defence partnerships with our Joint Expeditionary Force partners.

Further afield, to protect our values and global interests, and drive innovation, we are committing to developing and strengthening the AUKUS partnership to realise its full economic and security potential, and committed to building closer partnerships in the Indo Pacific and our allies in Africa.

The final and most important piece to have effective defence is our people.

And again, I must level with you that we are currently not recruiting or retaining enough people in our Armed Forces.This is a challenge not unique to Britain - many of our Allies are facing this as well.

But if we are to transform our Armed Forces, we need to attract more people, we need to train more people, and we need to retain more people.

That means offering them a career that makes them want to stay for longer. And for those who have left, want to rejoin.

The moral component of fighting power remains the key to building an effective and lethal force.

Which is why, over recent years, John Healey the Defence Secretary, and I have fought to highlight the need to improve conditions for serving personnel, their families, and veterans.

And that's why, as a Government, we are determined to renew the contract between the nation and those who serve. You will hear more about that in the months ahead.

It's a commitment we made in our manifesto and it's absolutely vital for our national security.

If we don't get this right, we don't get the people that keeps the country and our allies safe.

So we will put the Armed Forces Covenant fully into law and appoint an independent Armed Forces Commissioner with a clear brief to improve service life.

And as our new Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, my colleague, Maria Eagle, has said we will fix our broken procurement system. And she also has a determination to tackle the poor quality of the housing our personnel and their families.

And our new Minister for Veterans and People, who was until a few months ago a Colonel in the Royal Marines, Alistair Carns, will improve veterans' access to support for mental health, employment, and housing.

We will be a joined-up, ‘One Defence' ministerial team, breaking down silos, and working to deliver a joined-up ‘one defence' approach to the sector, with serving personnel, officials, innovators and industry, all working more closely.

Now, the window in my new office overlooks the River Thames. This is a big improvement to the window to my office in Parliament.

As a relatively new MP elected in 2017, if you've got a window in your office, you're doing well. So to have multiple windows is a quite a treat.

So to have multiple windows in the MOD I can see the RAF memorial on the banks of the River Thames.

That memorial to the British and allied pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain,

 that Churchill christened as the “few who gave so much for the many” is something that I take very seriously.

It's a reminder of the important role that the Royal Air Force plays. Not just in our national security but our national story as well.

As I take on the role of the Minister for Armed Forces, those memorials, not just on the Thames but in every community around the country, including the one that I represent in Plymouth, are a lasting reminder that we must have a strong Air Force, but that we must back the people who work in uniform and the civilians who support or Air Force.

But like in the 1930s, our world is increasingly volatile and dangerous. And like the 1930s, we need to invest in airpower, and give our Royal Air Force not only the best aircraft but the best capabilities and people that we can.

Just like the 1930's, when new technology like radar was being pioneered by the RAF, today, some of the same spirit of innovation exists and must be nurtured further in space, cyber and across electronic warfare, giving us a much clearer plan for averting war in Western Europe than existed in the 1930s.

Our security relies on ‘effective collective deterrence'. And this new Labour government will enhance it: By increasing defence spending; investing in our Armed Forces; investing in our next generation nuclear capability; and reconnecting Britain with our allies and partners.

We will reform defence to improve decision making, strengthen industrial resilience, improve morale, and deliver better value for money.

And in partnership with our innovators and industry, we will equip ourselves for all domain warfare, cutting edge capabilities, and greater lethality.

More integrated and interoperable with our allies, standing with Ukraine, standing up to Putin, and standing up for the values that we all share. Democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.

So whether you are on the front line, or in support. An international ally, or ally in industry. We all have an important part to play.

And to our international friends, I want you to know that Britain is back.

In Britain, with Keir Starmer as Prime Minister and John Healey as Defence Secretary, you have a refreshed and revitalised partner in the world stage.

Reconnecting with friends and building new alliances in service of collective deterrence and security.

We have our eyes wide open about how difficult these challenges are and how hard the world is. And nothing I've outlined today will be quick or easy.

There are difficult challenges ahead: Hybrid threats and hostile states.

But we bring serious pragmatic leadership, a clear plan, and a renewed spirit of collaboration, that will make us more secure at home and strong abroad.