asked the Secretary of State for Defence when he will make an announcement regarding the future aircraft carrier programme for the Royal Navy.

This is an extremely complex issue on which we must be certain that we reach the right conclusion. There is still some more work to be done before we can reach a final decision, but I shall make a final decision in the course of the defence review.

Does not the right hon. Gentleman realise that he gained a lot of popularity in the last election by promising bigger conventional forces—and that we have seen nothing of them to date?

No, Sir.