Tumultuous times in the House
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The House of Commons recess started last week, with MPs away from Westminster until early September. It has been a momentous few weeks.
The deepening phone hacking scandal has opened up a national debate about the role of the media in our society today and the often murky relationships between the press, the police, and politicians. About time too.
The open and wide-ranging inquiry that the government has announced provides a huge opportunity to get the bottom of these issues and make much-needed changes that can restore some faith in these crucial institutions. The judge leading the inquiry will have the power to summon witnesses for questioning under oath, and will be asked to look both at the specifics of phone hacking and the much wider issues raised. He will be supported by a panel of independent experts.
Liberal Democrats have pressed the case for change for many years, but we have also defended the freedom of the press. Media scrutiny has caused many important changes to happen – for example, recently and rightly exposing MPs’ abuses of their expenses. That ability to scrutinise, investigate, and bring wrong-doing to the public eye is a crucial defence for a free society. The appalling, immoral actions of some in the media must not cause that to be called into question.
The period leading up to the summer recess is a busy time, even without the frenzied atmosphere which the phone-hacking scandal added to the final weeks.
Since the Defence Review last year, the Government has been looking very carefully at the future structure of our Armed Forces. This has not been easy for those directly affected, especially at a time when our troops are on the ground in Afghanistan and when the RAF has been at the centre of international action in Libya.
Last week, the key decisions on the future of military bases in Scotland and all over the UK were announced. It brought welcome relief to Lossiemouth, where the RAF base will be retained as the Scottish home for Typhoon jets. It also brought much greater clarity for Kinloss, with confirmation that army units will be based there to mitigate the withdrawal of the Nimrod fleet last year.
I know people locally understand that my role in government has meant that I have not been able to speak publicly about these decisions, though many people from across Scotland have raised the matter directly with me. That does not mean that I do not understand their importance to the future of our area or to our armed forces.
These decisions must be driven primarily by the needs of the military. As a Treasury minister, my role was to make sure that the economic consequences and the impact on public spending were properly understood, taken into account, and mitigated if necessary.
The Moray task force did a hugely impressive job of pulling together the necessary evidence, as did its counterpart in Fife. I hope that, whatever people’s reaction to the decision, they will see that this evidence has been carefully and properly taken into account.
On Monday this week, I visited Kinloss to meet members of the Kinloss Skills Partnership – an organisation which has been formed to understand and promote the expertise which the RAF has brought to the area, with a view to attracting new private sector jobs and investment.
Both the personnel on the base at Kinloss and many of the contractors who work with them have highly sought-after skills in areas like engineering, IT and management. I look forward to working with them and with local agencies like Highlands & Islands Enterprise to make sure we don’t miss out on the opportunity those skills present.
The period of the review has not been an easy time for those with direct or indirect links to the bases – here in the Highlands or anywhere else in the UK. Inevitably, where big decisions have to be taken, it takes time to hear all the evidence openly – and that means short term uncertainty.
The responsibility of Government is to get it right for the long term; to fulfil our duty of care to our servicemen and women; and to provide for our future security. That responsibility does not end with this announcement, but after a difficult period I believe we are on the right track.
