Middle East: ‘Fast-moving’ situation in region making it ‘tougher’ to return British Nationals, says Defence Secretary
Defence Secretary John Healey has said the “fast moving” situation in the Middle East is making the Government’s task of returning British Nationals “tougher”, after around 140,000 British Nationals registered their presence in the region.
Speaking to The Yorkshire Post in Sheffield, Mr Healey said that his “number one priority” as Defence Secretary is protecting British people.
His comments came in response to questions on how the Government plans to make sure British Nationals are able to get home from the Middle East. Following the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, 140,000 people in the region registered their presence with the UK's Foreign Office.
On Thursday, British passengers due to leave on a delayed Government-chartered plane from Oman described chaotic scenes in the run-up to the flight departing, with one passenger telling Sky News that the situation was a “total shambles”.
Responding to the comments on Friday, Mr Healey told The Yorkshire Post: “I'm glad for that passenger that they are now home. That passenger will be well aware, wherever they've flown from, of how Iran is attacking countries throughout the Middle East indiscriminately.
“That passenger and their family will also be aware of how fast moving the situation is, how in any conflict, circumstances change, which make the task that the British government is doing tougher.
“Our number one priority, and my number one priority as Defence Secretary, is protecting British people, military and civilians, protecting our British bases and protecting our allies. That's why I strengthened our UK defenses in Cyprus in Qatar, and it's why from day one of this conflict you had British jets in the skies flying to help protect our British forces.”
Earlier this week, Admiral Lord West of Spithead, the former First Sea Lord, described the Royal Navy as being in a “more parlous state than at any stage in the last 60 years,” adding that the force “doesn’t deliver what the nation needs”.
Asked about Admiral Lord West’s comments, and whether there were any doubts around the Navy’s ability to provide sufficient defence capabilities if the Middle East conflict escalates, Mr Healey said that underfunding from the previous Government had impacted the force.
He said: “Admiral West knows better than anyone the truth of what Ben Wallace, the previous Conservative Defence Secretary, said, when he said ‘we have hollowed out and underfunded our armed forces’.
“The investment this Government is now putting in will help to rebuild the strength of our forces.
“What we’ve been doing since we've seen the way that Iran is lashing out after these strikes is deploying to protect our British forces. We've been deploying to try and protect British allies.
“Yesterday, out in Cyprus, I was able to confirm not just that we've got extra jets, but that we've got radars in place, extra drone teams and electronic warfare systems to defend Cyprus, as well as to defend our base in Cyprus.”
Mr Healey’s comments came during a visit to the factory of Buffalo Systems, the Sheffield outdoor jacket manufacturer which was last year bought by a team including explorer and TV presenter Ben Fogle.
Mr Fogle said the visit had “meant the world” to the Buffalo team, adding: “The fact that the Defence Secretary, in this time of worldwide crisis, has still managed to find time to come up here and meet every single member of staff and to see the craft that goes into making these jackets and help us celebrate our heritage, really does mean the world to us.”