Failure in Afghanistan is not an option

Speaking at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Dr Liam Fox has said that British Forces cannot be allowed to fail in Afghanistan.

He stressed that the sooner Afghan Security Forces can be trained and on the frontline tackling the terrorists, the faster British troops can return home.

To help reinforce security on the ground, Dr Fox called for a "Bottom up solution for building up the Afghan national police to compliment our top down building of the Afghan National Army."

To help achieve all of this, Conservatives would be "sympathetic" to an increase in the number of soldiers.

The Shadow Defence Secretary said, "The Government must provide all of the tools - soft and hard power, civilian and military - to be successful."

And he added, "If Afghanistan is lost, it will be lost at home by political leaders - not by our gallant men and women in the frontline. Failure is not an option."

Read the speech in full here.