Lords Arctic Committee to take evidence from Foreign office and MoD Ministers
The House of Lords Select Committee on the Arctic will next week take evidence from James Duddridge MP, Parliamentary under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and Defence Minister Julian Brazier MP, in the final evidence session of their inquiry.
The Ministers will be accompanied by departmental officials Nick Gurr, Director of International Security Policy at the MoD and Jane Rumble, Head of the Polar Regions Unit at the FCO.
The session will start at 10:45am on Tuesday 16 December in Committee Room 1 of the House of Lords.
Areas the session will cover include:
- Has the UK been upfront in making clear its interests in the Arctic?
- Is the UK's approach overly cautious compared to the extensive and rapid engagement undertaken by new Arctic Council observer states?
- How well is the UK engaging with the multiple different international organisations relevant to the country's Arctic interests?
- How can the UK best influence the Arctic Council?
- How has the loss of British maritime patrol aircraft affected the UK's surveillance capacity and ability to support search and rescue in Arctic and near-Arctic waters?
- Does the potential increase in maritime traffic in and around the Arctic challenge the UK's surveillance capabilities?
