:00:16. > :00:24.Now Sir Michael Fallon, the Defence Secretary, has been used by the
:00:25. > :00:27.prime list as her faithful attack dog. I think it is fair to say he is
:00:28. > :00:31.not a massive fan of Jeremy Corbyn but he has plenty of questions to
:00:32. > :00:35.answer about the state of the Armed Forces under the Conservatives.
:00:36. > :00:40.In 2015 the Conservatives made a solemn promise about the size
:00:41. > :00:47.of the Armed Forces, can you remind us of the promise?
:00:48. > :00:50.We said we would build the army up to 82000 by 2020.
:00:51. > :00:52.What is the size of the Armed Forces?
:00:53. > :00:58.We said we would build up forces, including reserves
:00:59. > :01:05.The quote was, we will maintain the size of the regular armed
:01:06. > :01:08.services and not reduce the army to below 82000 and the current
:01:09. > :01:10.figure is 79,000, so you have broken that promise.
:01:11. > :01:12.We said we would do it over the parliament
:01:13. > :01:20.Increasing the size of the Army up to 2020,
:01:21. > :01:27.We have recruitment campaigns, increasing the size of the Navy,
:01:28. > :01:32.the size of the Royal Air Force and we are determined to improve
:01:33. > :01:35.the offer we make to service men and women to attract the best
:01:36. > :01:43.At the moment recruitment is going badly and you are not
:01:44. > :01:46.getting enough into the army, you were meant to get 9500 in this
:01:47. > :01:48.year and it is 6000, you are going backwards.
:01:49. > :01:53.We have several years before we reach our target
:01:54. > :01:57.but we are spending more on the Armed Forces.
:01:58. > :01:59.The budget goes up every year and we are giving them
:02:00. > :02:09.You said I don't accept those figures.
:02:10. > :02:12.The figures, the target was 9580 to join last year and the figure
:02:13. > :02:17.That is why top brass are worried about you and the army under you.
:02:18. > :02:20.We cannot force people to join, we do not have conscription,
:02:21. > :02:22.the Army has to compete with other sectors.
:02:23. > :02:30.It was a promise over the parliament and we are only two
:02:31. > :02:33.years into the parliament and we are spending money
:02:34. > :02:44.on recruiting and giving the Armed Forces equipment they need.
:02:45. > :02:45.You have seen aircraft carriers being built,
:02:46. > :02:49.we are buying new aircraft, and investing in
:02:50. > :03:01.You said you will increase defence spending by 0.5% above inflation.
:03:02. > :03:05.That costs roughly over the five years of the new parliament added
:03:06. > :03:08.to the two years of the last parliament giving the forces roughly
:03:09. > :03:12.?1 billion more than if we had simply met the 2% target.
:03:13. > :03:17.The money comes from the growing economy and it was a commitment
:03:18. > :03:20.we made, choice to spend more on the health service
:03:21. > :03:22.and defence and we have reduce spending in other areas.
:03:23. > :03:25.So this is an underfunded commitment, you are
:03:26. > :03:31.The money has to come from somewhere.
:03:32. > :03:36.Borrowing is slowly going to be reduced but it comes from a growing
:03:37. > :03:38.economy is the real answer, because we are running
:03:39. > :03:41.the economy efficiently and because the economy is growing,
:03:42. > :03:46.more people in work, more revenue coming in,
:03:47. > :03:53.and we can make choices, not wild spending and borrowing
:03:54. > :03:56.promises like Labour but to spend more on the NHS and defence.
:03:57. > :04:00.According to the Defence Select Committee and Times newspaper
:04:01. > :04:03.there is a black hole in your equipment budget
:04:04. > :04:17.We are planning the biggest equipment programme in generations.
:04:18. > :04:27.New aircraft carriers, frigates, maritime patrol aircraft,
:04:28. > :04:37.Part of the cost has to come from efficiency savings,
:04:38. > :04:39.getting rid for example of land, barracks, buildings we do not need,
:04:40. > :04:44.being more efficient in the way we work.
:04:45. > :04:47.7.3 billion over the 10-year period, over the five-year period,
:04:48. > :04:51.I'm sorry, of efficiency savings on top of savings already made
:04:52. > :04:55.which means if you have airfields you do not need you shut them down.
:04:56. > :05:01.We have 60 airfields, we do not need 60.
:05:02. > :05:03.You have to be more efficient as a large organisation
:05:04. > :05:10.It is absolutely right to invest in that programme we have
:05:11. > :05:14.to reinvest efficiency savings we make.
:05:15. > :05:16.The big change is we keep all the efficiency savings.
:05:17. > :05:19.The Treasury does not take them back.
:05:20. > :05:21.You have not persuaded your top brass who wrote a letter
:05:22. > :05:33.It says that your statements about the defence budget have been
:05:34. > :05:39.disingenuous quoting irrelevant financial statistics and they say,
:05:40. > :05:42.the government boasts of spending 2% of GDP on defence,
:05:43. > :05:45.widely criticised as a deception and the Armed Forces are having
:05:46. > :05:47.to seek damaging savings at a time when combat operations
:05:48. > :05:56.The 2% is not our figure, it is the Nato figure.
:05:57. > :06:04.It is the way you have netted a or criticising. -- you have met it they
:06:05. > :06:06.are criticising. The Secretary General of Nato
:06:07. > :06:08.was in London this week seeing myself on the Prime Minister
:06:09. > :06:11.and he confirmed publicly according to the Nato definitions,
:06:12. > :06:13.we are meeting 2%, almost 2.2%. It is other countries that are not
:06:14. > :06:16.spending up to the 2% and he confirmed our spending
:06:17. > :06:18.is defined according These are former chiefs
:06:19. > :06:21.of defence staff. Have you ever met somebody covered
:06:22. > :06:24.in brass, a former defence chief They are passionate about defence
:06:25. > :06:31.and so am I and I am proud It was 35 billion last year
:06:32. > :06:36.and 36 billion this year and will go up to 40 billion and we will invest
:06:37. > :06:43.the biggest equipment programme the Armed Forces have seen
:06:44. > :06:46.in generations and to do that we have to be more efficient
:06:47. > :06:53.about the way we work. What this government has not
:06:54. > :06:56.invested in is defences You did not give the NHS the proper
:06:57. > :07:00.money to stop this cyber attack In the security review over a year
:07:01. > :07:10.and a few months ago we identified cyber threats as one of the three
:07:11. > :07:13.principal threats and set aside ?1.9 billion to protect us better
:07:14. > :07:16.against cyber and a chunk of that We are spending around ?50 million
:07:17. > :07:28.on the NHS cyber systems to improve security and have encouraged NHS
:07:29. > :07:33.trusts to reduce exposure Less than 5% of the trusts
:07:34. > :07:40.use that system. There is money available
:07:41. > :07:43.to strengthen these systems. You did not pay for them
:07:44. > :07:46.to strengthen that system It was an old system
:07:47. > :07:52.we did not want them to use. We warned them and we warned them
:07:53. > :08:05.again in the spring. It is the fault of the trusts, not
:08:06. > :08:06.the government, is that what you are saying?
:08:07. > :08:08.We all have to work about this, the NHS wasn't
:08:09. > :08:12.The same attacks were applied to Nissan and other areas
:08:13. > :08:16.We are spending money on strengthening the cyber defence
:08:17. > :08:20.Is it the case the nuclear, Trident submarines are using Windows XP?
:08:21. > :08:23.We never comment on different systems for reasons
:08:24. > :08:35.Vanguard submarines, I can absolutely assure you are safe
:08:36. > :08:37.and operate in isolation when out on patrol.
:08:38. > :08:39.I have complete confidence in the nuclear deterrent.
:08:40. > :08:42.There is no possibility of a malware attack against the military?
:08:43. > :08:46.I can assure you the nuclear deterrent is protected.
:08:47. > :08:51.You used a strange phrase when you said in certain
:08:52. > :08:53.circumstances you thought we would use first strike
:08:54. > :09:01.The key to the nuclear deterrent is to leave uncertainty in the mind
:09:02. > :09:04.of any potential adversary, if he is looking at a country
:09:05. > :09:09.to attack, as to what response he can expect, to leave ambiguity
:09:10. > :09:13.in the mind of your enemy and that is why we never rule out
:09:14. > :09:17.whether we would apply first strike or not.
:09:18. > :09:23.You can imagine using nuclear weapons before anybody else?
:09:24. > :09:32.The job of the nuclear weapons is to deter and has done that
:09:33. > :09:34.successfully over 50 years since we have had
:09:35. > :09:42.You have been critical of Labour on the nuclear issue and defence.
:09:43. > :09:48.They might say that the problem with your side is wanting to talk
:09:49. > :09:51.first and bomb later but you always want to bomb first and talk later.
:09:52. > :09:54.Is there a single war since the Second World War
:09:55. > :10:00.When we voted on the Iraq War, we were under
:10:01. > :10:07.I voted for it, like a lot of MPs, because we were told
:10:08. > :10:16.there were weapons of mass destruction and it
:10:17. > :10:26.I regret voting for it on the basis there were weapons
:10:27. > :10:29.I regret voting for it on the basis there weren't weapons
:10:30. > :10:33.We were dealing with a dictator who invaded other countries and were
:10:34. > :10:36.The problem with Labour's approaches they are now saying
:10:37. > :10:39.Emily Thornberry suggested they might negotiate over
:10:40. > :10:42.You were in favour of using force in Libya.
:10:43. > :10:45.The Foreign Select Committee report on what happened in Libya
:10:46. > :10:48.after the war you were keen on, it resulted in, it says, economic
:10:49. > :11:02.collapse, intertribal warfare, humanitarian and migrant crises,
:11:03. > :11:05.human rights violations and the spread of the Gadaffi regime
:11:06. > :11:09.In short it was a total disaster and you voted for it.
:11:10. > :11:11.The reason was to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe
:11:12. > :11:20.where an entire city was potentially going to be wiped out.
:11:21. > :11:22.That is why we have the intervention.
:11:23. > :11:25.You are right, when you intervene, we need to learn the lessons
:11:26. > :11:28.of these conflicts, there needs to be a proper plan
:11:29. > :11:30.for stabilisation, I have been working with others
:11:31. > :11:35.That we stabilise these areas and bring in security after the war
:11:36. > :11:37.is over to ensure the Sunni have a proper stake
:11:38. > :11:48.You have launched a new council housing policy and there are two
:11:49. > :11:54.The money is coming from the 1.4 billion earmarked for capital
:11:55. > :11:57.expenditure from the Autumn Statement.
:11:58. > :12:03.It is not new money but the amount of money for each council
:12:04. > :12:09.will depend on deals struck with Manchester, Birmingham,
:12:10. > :12:12.to get more social housing built in these areas of a high enough
:12:13. > :12:18.It is an attractive policy that will give people an alternative
:12:19. > :12:23.to waiting and waiting to get into a council house or flat.
:12:24. > :12:30.You and Emily Thornberry are coming back in a little while.