Fred Thomas MP

This Labour government is delivering defence investment into Plymouth - and it's only the beginning.

Strange to see myself on TV in my Royal Marines uniform this week!

This was filmed last year before the election.

I’m always blown away by how professional & motivated the people who sign up to become Commandos are.

I never had a training role as a regular, so it was a privilege to be involved.

The Army know how to modernise, but they need more funding (now) to do it, and we need to tell a national story about the high technology, secure, ethical work available in a growing defence industry.

But the fact remains we are sending our people out to Estonia to man the Russia border without the full suite required to fight and survive in contemporary warfare. And we know it.

One thing Gen Roly was clear on is how crucial the ever closer relationship between fighting force and defence industry becomes if we are to achieve his vision. Thank you to all the companies who have been supporting the Army.

And the same goes for the leadership from top to bottom. Gen Roly Walker, chief of the Army, briefed us his relentless focus on leveraging tech to increase lethality and survivability.

From FPV drones that kill tanks, to electro-magnetic warfare devices - they’re not waiting around for the system to put the right kit in their hands: they are getting after it themselves.

The ingenuity of our soldiers amazes me. They know they will be deploying for 6 months just 100km west of the Russia border & want to be ready.

With little direction, many have taken it upon themselves to buy tech online & tinker with it to produce contemporary capability.

This was part of a remarkable Defence Committee visit to British Army HQ.

Briefed in Andover by Gen Roly Walker and his team, then out to see the Forward Land Force, part of 1 Div, on their final exercise before they go out to Estonia to take up the job of deterring Putin.

My first time back on Salisbury Plain Training Area as an MP brought mixed emotions:

Awe and pride in our soldiers and their relentless focus on fighting and winning on the one hand.

But equally: alarm at how slow our defence system is responding their pleas for modernisation.

Top story on @telegraphnews.bsky.social this morning carrying my argument for defence investment supercharging growth.

We must:

- Manufacture at scale and export, like the French do

- Reform civil service commercial paralysis

- Joint venture with Ukrainian companies on UK soil

Defence spending is an investment in our number one mission: growth.

It can create tens of thousands of skilled, secure and unionised jobs in manufacturing and technology.

We can export to NATO, unlock private investment, and secure our economy.

#PoliticsLive @bbc-politics.bsky.social

False-patriot Reform MPs are incapable of standing up for British values Reform MPs reject British values and spew Kremlin propaganda. The British people will see through their dangerous rhetoric.

"Reform MPs reject British values and spew Kremlin propaganda. The British people will see through their dangerous rhetoric."

✍️ Five Labour MPs elected in July @miketapp.bsky.social @willstonemp.bsky.social @fredthomasuk.bsky.social, Helena Dollimore, and Paul Foster

I'll be on PoliticsLive at 12:15 today.

👉 Watch live at: www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/live...

We must be clearer with the public about the threat of Russia The government is committed to increasing the defence budget, but to bring the public onside they need to be transparent about Russia’s aggression.

We must be clearer with the public about the threat of Russia
✍️ @fredthomasuk.bsky.social

Great morning on the doors.
@lukepollard.bsky.social

Many residents mentioned delight that we have secured Derriford’s new A&E after years of empty Tory promises.

We knock doors all year round, not just at election time!

(19/19) I am absolutely determined to continue to fight for better health outcomes for people in Plymouth, and whilst I am over the moon about last week’s news at Derriford, this victory only makes me even more determined to go on and get more for our city and its people.

(18/19) This win will make an enormous difference for staff and patients, but I know it is not the final piece of the puzzle. We still need improvements in healthcare settings right across the city, at Derriford, at GP surgeries and in dentistry.

(17/19) This will house an Urgent Treatment Centre, not to be confused with the new A&E which will be party of the main hospital building. I am deeply impressed by hospital staff at every level.

(16/19) The team at Derriford have almost completed the new Dartmoor Building which has sprung up overlooking Derriford Roundabout.

(15/19) This is incredibly exciting news for Plymouth, and as a city we should feel incredibly proud that we have secured such immense investment into our hospital.

(14/19) And now here we are, at the start of 2025, with confirmation from the Health Secretary that the new A&E will be built, and that the work will start within the next 12 months.

(13/19) He met staff, heard first-hand about the many challenges they face, and was told what a new A&E Department would mean to them and folk across Plymouth.

(12/19) It was then that I knew the most compelling way to make our case to the Health Secretary would be for him to visit himself and meet some of the incredible staff. So, I invited him and over Christmas he made a quiet, low-key visit to Derriford Hospital.

(11/19) At the start of December I was invited to join staff on a night shift at Derriford, and given the opportunity to see the amazing work that they do under such difficult circumstances. I saw heroics that night, but I know that it is simply what happens there every day.

(10/19) I was doing all I could to make sure that decision makers in Whitehall understood how important this project was for our city. But ultimately, it was hard to know whether the message was getting through.

(9/19) Behind the scenes I was meeting with the Health Secretary, making our case for a new A&E and liaising with Derriford’s senior leadership to make sure the message I was sending to government was the correct one.

(8/19) I wrote to Boris Johnson calling out his lies, asking him to apologise to the people of Plymouth and I asked a question to the Deputy PM during PMQs, securing a meeting with ministers.

(7/19) So, the government had to assess whether all of these projects, including Derriford, were viable and affordable. That’s when my campaign really stepped up a gear.

(6/19) Then, when the Labour Party came into power last year, we discovered that the Conservatives had not allocated funding to the project or the 40 other promised projects across the country. It had always been an empty promise in an attempt to win votes.