Richard recently attended a meeting with the UK's allies to discuss shared defence and security concerns.
Speaking after the meeting, Richard said:
"The first priority of any British government is the defence of the realm. MPs and Peers in our Parliament do vital work helping to hold the government to account for decisions it takes regarding national security. Given how closely we work with our NATO allies in mutual defence, I often speak to MPs for other countries - like Germany and the US - as well as from other NATO allies.
Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine has changed defence globally and no more so than in the U.K.. It is clear we need to invest more in both equipment and people in defence as the situation has fundamentally changed from the era in which the Soviet Union collapsed and the USA was so pre-eminent we could cash in on the ‘peace dividend’ by not needing to invest properly in our own defence.
In part of my role holding the Government to account for our defence, I occasionally attend meetings of US, European and British politicians working on defence matters. I’ve done so recently at the US Embassy on our mutual ties, and a couple of times with colleagues from the The International Institute for Strategic Studies and German Parliament, the Bundestag, as Germany under its new CDU/CSU led Government step up defence spending from historically pitiful levels to meet the needs of today.
One of the things that appears to be increasingly concerning for us and European allies is the growing threat posed by Russian sabotage and malign activity across the continent.
Strengthening the resilience of UK and our allies, and sharing best practice on how we can work together to strengthen our resilience against these evolving threats is crucial. From infrastructure protection to countering misinformation from foreign powers, coordinated action is more important than ever.
The UK stands firm alongside our US, Canadian, Australian and European partners in defending democracy, upholding the rule of law, and deterring aggression in all its forms. Sweden and Finland’s moves to join NATO show just throw serious the threat is felt in many countries.
As your MP, I will continue to support efforts to keep our country safe and to back our security services in their tireless work to protect our national interests. And I’ll always work with colleague to proactively hold the government to account to ensure it’s acting in the UK's national interests when it is, I’ll support them. When it’s not - like over Chagos - I’ll make my views very clear too."
