Bob Ainsworth
Bob Ainsworth
Robert William "Bob" Ainsworthis a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliamentfor Coventry North East from 1992 to 2015, and was the Secretary of State for Defence from 2009 to 2010. Following the general election in 2010 he was the Shadow Defence Secretary, but was replaced by Jim Murphy following the election of new Labour leader Ed Miliband...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionPolitician
Date of Birth19 June 1952
defence environment quickly respond security
Defence must be more adaptable, able to respond quickly to the changes in the security environment and the character of conflict.
behave collective elected labour parliament struck
When I was first elected to parliament 18 years ago, one of the many things that struck me and that I still feel now is how the Labour Party, the party of collective action, can, at MP level and above, behave in such an individualistic way.
building capable genuinely inspiring leader media open policies present project true
We need a leader able to project his or her personality and present our policies in today's media environment. All this is true - but we also need a leader capable of building a team, inspiring loyalty from colleagues, and one genuinely open to ideas.
again allow attacks cannot haven july plan provide september terrorists
We cannot allow Afghanistan to become again a haven for terrorists who inspire, plan and provide support for attacks like those of 11 September 2001, of 7 July 2005 in London, and more.
afghan allowed future girls helping hope people
We are not in Afghanistan because girls were not allowed to go to school, but helping them do so will give the Afghan people hope for a better future.
long tough backgrounds
I come from a pretty tough background and I learned a long time ago not to be bothered.
country war west
We in the West walked away from Afghanistan at the end of the Cold War and left it as a country devastated socially and armed to the teeth. If we do that again, there will be consequences.
privilege defence expected
I never expected to be Defence Secretary. It's a great privilege.
hero spirit another-life
My heroes are the non-commissioned officers. If I had another life thats what Id be - a regimental sergeant major or a similar rank. Thats where the spirit of the armed forces is.
hair people teeth
I got a tooth bust by somebody who decided they didn't like me and I thought the moustache hid a scar on my lip. It's true that people were told facial hair was not appreciated by the British public, but I just decided to keep the moustache.
years profound watches
Failure in Afghanistan would have profound consequences for our national security. It would undermine the NATO alliance structure that has been the bedrock of Britain's defence for the last 60 years... I will not allow this to happen on my watch.
growing-up italian cooking
Growing up, I was always in the kitchen. Even in third grade, I made cooking videos called 'The Little Italian.' Very little production value, but it was good.
fighting insurgency national political prevent protect reduced returning terrorists war
The war in Afghanistan is too important to be reduced to a political football. We are fighting there to protect our national security. We are confronting the Taliban-led insurgency to prevent terrorists returning to that country.
afghan forces government insurgents lasting people reasoning resist security success terrorists
The reasoning for our civil-military plan is that lasting success will be when the Afghan government, security forces and people can resist the insurgents and terrorists themselves.