Sweeping reforms to the armed forces have been set out in the Queen's Speech.

In the Armed Forces Bill, the government is proposing to establish a single system of service law for the armed forces.

Ministers are claiming that this is the first substantial review of the separate systems of service discipline for 50 years.

The main provisions of the legislation include the establishment of a unified court martial system, and of a joint service prosecuting authority.

Ministers have also claimed that the armed forces have been consulted in the bill's provisions from the outset and have been "intimately involved" in developing the policy.

The government has warned however that it will be a large and complex bill of around 350 clauses and that it won't be ready for introduction until the end of November 2005.

Foreign affairs

An EU Referendum Bill leads the way in foreign affairs.

The legislation aims to make provision for the EU Constitutional Treaty in UK law, and to provide for a referendum on the ratification of the treaty.

The treaty will come into force on November 1, 2006, providing that all member states, including the UK, have ratified it by then.

Legislation will also be introduced to ratify the treaty of accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the European Union.

With the UK enjoying the presidencies of the EU and G8 this year, ministers have pledged to make "real progress" on climate change and Africa.

During its EU presidency, the government is also looking to make progress on promoting trade liberalisation and to review the sustainable development strategy.

Support for the Iraq transitional government has been repeated, with ministers pledging to provide troops for as long as necessary.

A critical requirement will be the development of sufficient and capable Iraqi security forces.

Ministers are not proposing to introduce fresh legislation, but have reiterated their determination to make "a world safer from global terrorsm and weapons of mass destruction".

The Foreign Office has warned that Weapons of Mass Destruction "pose one of the biggest threats to the security of the UK and its interests".

Iran's nuclear programme remains a concern, and ministers have pledged to continue efforts to obtain guarantees that its nuclear programme is "exclusively" for peaceful purposes.

The government has also urged North Korea's regime to rejoin talks about its nuclear programme as soon as possible.

Kofi Annan's attempts to revamp the United Nations continue to have the government's support.

The Foreign Office says the secretary general's report on modernising the UN will make the bod more effective and more efficient.

Ministers are also supporting expansion in both the permanent and non-permanent membership of the Security Council.

The government is supporting the candidatures of Germany, Japan, Brazil and India, as well as permanent African representation.