1 Introduction
1. This report describes the work of the Defence
Committee in 2005 and 2006, since its appointment in July 2005
following the 2005 General Election. Our report follows the format
suggested by the Liaison Committee in order to ease comparison
with other Committees.
2. Our report does not deal with the work of the
Committee in the last Parliament, though we note that in the early
months of 2005 our predecessors were busy. Shortly before the
2005 Dissolution of Parliament, our predecessor Committee published
reports on the Government's draft legislative proposals for a
Tri-Service Armed Forces Bill[1];
on the Duty of Care (the report of a major inquiry inspired by
concern about the deaths of four young soldiers at Deepcut)[2];
on the Government's 2004 White Paper Delivering Security in
a Changing World: Future Capabilities[3],
and an update on the situation in Iraq[4].
In addition, with colleagues on the Foreign Affairs, International
Development and Trade and Industry Committees, it published its
annual report of parliamentary scrutiny of Strategic Export Controls.[5]
We pay tribute to the valuable work conducted by our predecessor
Committee under the chairmanship of the Rt Hon Member for Walsall
South, Rt Hon Bruce George MP, much of which we intend to follow
up in the current Parliament.
1 Defence Committee, Second Report of Session 2004-05,
Tri-Service Armed Forces Bill, HC 64 Back
2
Defence Committee, Third Report of Session 2004-05, Duty of
Care, HC 63-I Back
3
Defence Committee, Fourth Report of Session 2004-05, Future
Capabilities, HC 45-I Back
4
Defence Committee, Sixth Report of Session 2004-05, Iraq: An
Initial Assessment of Post-Conflict Operations, HC 65-I Back
5
Defence Committee, Fifth Report (First Joint Report of the Quadripartite
Committee) of Session 2004-05, Strategic Export Controls-HMG's
Annual Report for 2003, Licensing Policy and Parliamentary Scrutiny,
HC 145 Back
|
