Army

New Defence Select Committee Chairman Announced

Rory Stewart, the Conservative MP for Penrith & the Border, has been elected the new chairman of the House of Commons Defence Committee, beating off competition from seven other Conservative MPs.

Mr Stewart is a former Infantry Officer in the Black Watch, and after joining the Diplomatic Service he was appointed as Coalition Deputy Governor, responsible for two provinces of Southern Iraq.

He replaces James Arbuthnot who for a decade has been the public face of the Committee.