Speeches by Baker.

“I am interested in the sense of pride and how you can measure pride. I am also interested in what you have done in taking a place-based approach to talking about defence. Much of our defence sector does not talk about place. They talk about systems and things they deliver. How can you provide the hook that acts through…”

“As the Member for another great defence area, Aldershot and Farnborough, I am slightly sceptical about how much progress we are making on this total society approach to defence—I would like us to start with a total Government approach to defence—but maybe you guys are bucking that trend. Tell us a bit about the journey…”

“I am interested in how you measure Team Barrow’s impact. Do you do sentiment mapping? What are you hearing on the doorsteps of Barrow about where you are at on your journey?”

“I am proud to see this Government’s improvements to GP services making a real difference locally, with over 2,000 more GPs hired and new investment already reaching practices like Jenner House surgery in Farnborough. However, many of my older and more vulnerable constituents tell me they are still struggling to get thr…”

“1. What steps his Department is taking to improve patient access to GPs.”

“I appreciate that. All I would say is that MPs are your best storytellers on this. Ultimately, if you can give us the stories to tell, we will go and talk to our people about why this is important.”

“One of the big challenges for AUKUS is that, even among MPs, there is not enough awareness. I come to this as someone who is in very much a defence seat, but I do not represent Barrow. Barrow’s role in AUKUS is clear, but I find it difficult to understand the contribution of my constituency when it comes to AUKUS. How …”

“One of the challenges is that, ultimately, AUKUS is not just about Barrow or Derby. It is vital that those places feel the benefit, but pillar 2 is all about benefits beyond just building the submarines. How do we as MPs find out what is in our patch?”

“It has been part of your work to look at communications. What is your analysis of how the Government are communicating the narrative? What should the narrative look like and why is it important that they do that?”

“Sir Stephen, imagine you are one of my constituents living in Aldershot or Farnborough, the home of the British Army, and you are relatively au fait with defence. What should that person know about AUKUS?”

“How much do you think the public actually know about AUKUS?”

“Apologies for not being here at the beginning of the session. There was a Westminster Hall debate on Typhoons that I was speaking in. You have obviously covered a lot on the key measurement of success for defence reform. I am specifically interested in the process. We have become aware that there was an absence of a Co…”

“Thank you, Sir Christopher. It is innovation with purpose—a partnership between Government, industry and the armed forces that strengthens both our national security and our national prosperity. And now, with the recent deal between the United Kingdom and Turkey for the sale of 20 Typhoon jets—the biggest fighter jet a…”

“We will endeavour to ask those questions.”

“That is interesting. You highlight the implications, beyond just the MoD getting this right, in terms of making it harder for all of us to do our jobs. If we all get to do our jobs, the MoD will probably get a better outcome out of this process. I have a final question. What questions do we need to ask the MoD to evalu…”

“It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Sir Christopher. I congratulate the hon. Member for Fylde (Mr Snowden) on securing this debate. When we see the Typhoon take to the skies—its precision, power and unmistakable roar—it is easy to focus on what we can see: the aircraft, the pilot, the mission. Yet behind e…”

“My hon. Friend is entirely right, and I will talk about radar shortly. Our heritage enables QinetiQ to work in deep and purposeful partnership with the MOD, the Royal Air Force and the Air and Space Warfare Centre to provide mission-critical engineering outcomes. Its engineers, scientists and analysts are not merely ma…”

“We are going to delve into some of the detail now. What do you think each Government got right and what should each Government have done differently in respect of this legal process?”

“Is there anything the other two witnesses would like to add on what the Government got right and what they didn’t get right?”

“That is something we should probably ask about.”