UK Parliament / Open data

Armed Forces Bill

Proceeding contribution from Johnny Mercer (Conservative) in the House of Commons on Monday, 8 February 2021. It occurred during Debate on bills on Armed Forces Bill.

My right hon. Friend is very knowledgeable and learned in this space. The issue is a lot more complicated than it is made out to be by a lot of people who contribute to this debate. There is no evidence, essentially, of vexatious prosecutions per se. It is the investigations that are the trouble. There are elements of this Bill that address how we investigate. There are elements not in this Bill that are being brought into the Department, such as a serious crime unit, to ensure that these things can never happen again.

Let me be clear that if we were to invent a system that essentially said, “We will not investigate”, that would be the equivalent of an amnesty, and this Government are not committed to going down that route either. This is a difficult area and it is a delicate balance, but the strategic objective has been set by the Prime Minister; it is one that I and many Members in the House have campaigned on for years, and we will deliver on it. It is a tough ask and a tough battle, but we will win it. I urge patience while we get to the end of this battle.

About this proceeding contribution

Reference

689 cc50-1 

Session

2019-21

Chamber / Committee

House of Commons chamber
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