Any questions for Pauline Neville-Jones?

For over thirty years Pauline Neville-Jones was a career diplomat serving in Rhodesia, Singapore, Washington, Bonn and the European Commission.

In 1991 she was appointed Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet and Head of the Defence and Overseas Secretariat in the Cabinet Office. After a brief stint as Chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee she became Political Director in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 1994 until her retirement, where she led the British delegation to the Dayton negotiations on the Bosnia peace settlement.

Since then she has held senior positions in NatWest, the BBC and Qinetiq before being  appointed by David Cameron to head the Conservative Party's National and International Security Policy Group. Read its findings here. This summer Pauline was also appointed Shadow Security Minister and National Security Adviser to the Leader of the Opposition.

Comments

[michael mcgough]

Are you in favour of the new constitutional/amending/reform treaty?

[James Burdett]

Whilst embroiled in the Cold War and then ecstatic at its conclusion, almost everyone missed the growth of Al-Qaeda based terrorism. Where should we be looking to avoid the danger of repeating the mistake, that with the massive focus on the current Al-Qaeda and associated threats we miss the emerging security threats?

[Tony Makara]

Should Britain openly support and give financial assistance to democratic opposition groups in countries like Zimbabwe and Burma?

[Ataturk]

Is it in Britain's national interest to give shelter to wanted criminals like Boris Berezovsky or those suspected of terrorism like Akhmed Zakayev, especially since, in the case of Berezovsky, they have freely admitted to using London as a base to overthrow the democratically-elected government of another country (i.e, Russia).

Didn't we make this mistake in the 1980s and 1990s when we allowed large numbers of radical Muslim "dissidents" into Britain to carry out their political activities against other countries unchecked and unopposed?

[Charlie Buxton]

Should Britain continue to 'punch above its weight' at an international level and if so, how?

[Ay Up]

Do you agree that withdrawing our presence from Iraq within the next few years would be a disaster for Iraq and a betrayal of what our lads have been fighting for?

[Terry]

In the future, which countries, if any, should continue to have a veto in the UN.

[Teck]

In an environment of globalised migratory pressures, international and national homeland security are issues in the same continuum. What policies, if any, would you wish to see introduced to lessen the risks of home-grown and imported terrorism in general, and in particular what would your priorities be for immigration in the context of security?

[Mrs Gillian Watson]

My relatives are Chief Immigration Officers at Gatwick Airport. They tell me that Govt. inconsistencies cause many of their problems, and that department is seriously short of the physical area required in which to safely undertake their work. For instance asylum seekers sometimes have to be seated outside the department whilst enquiries are processed and then are found to have disappeared. Michael Ancram has details of other issues they have mentioned.
When the Conservatives gain power will we address these issues rather than encouraging more shopping at Airports?

[Londoner]

When did you join the Conservative Party?

Are you worried about the "surveillance society"? Do you agree that an incoming Tory Government should scrap ID cards and stop collecting the DNA of people who have not been convicted of, or cautioned for, any criminal offence?

[Michael Clarke]

With the emergence of a newly confident Russia, President Putin is using energy supply as a diplomatic tool or cut off as a threat.Given the U.K's new dependence on importation of energy from eastern Europe,should increased recourse to nuclear be a sensible response? France is self sufficient and far less vulnerable.

[Patricia Wilcock]

Regarding the EU Constitution/Treaty, if the EU is to have one foreign policy and Intelligence is to be shared amongst the Member States, this throws up some alarming issues.
In particular is the strategic importance of Cyprus to the gathering of information on the Middle East and to the monitoring of traffic and weapons movements. Britain retains sovereignty over large parts of the island, including Akrotiri Air Base and the island is bristling with military equipment and personnel. How comfortable will the Americans be if "our" joint Intelligence is shared by EU Member States, some of which are openly hostile to the USA?
In fact how comfortable should British Intelligence Services be?

[Anthony Broderick]

Do you regret..

- opposing intervention in Bosnia?

- doing business deals with Milosevic?

Thanks

[B.Garvie]

Dame Pauline,Do you agree that we should have a referendum on the EU Reform treaty? It contains some alarming details about the introduction of a 'blue card' (similar to USA green card)for citizens from outside the EU. After 5 years they will be granted permanent residency. Do you think this is compatible with migration policy?
Do you view this as another layer of bureaucracy that will hinder detection of terrorists?

[Alan S]

Is the British military underfunded, overfunded or does it have just the right level of funding?

[Kevin Lohse]

Dear Pauline. I would suggest that
there are 2 major tasks in defeating home-grown terrorism: winning the military struggle and winning a "hearts and minds" campaign. Unfortunately there are several dichotomies in acheiving these aims.
What is your strategy for reducing the ease with which Al Quaida recruits young britons to carry out atrocities in the name of Islam?

[Deputy Editor]

Thanks for you questions, I've sent a selection to Pauline.