Written questions by Cartlidge.

When MQ-9B protector will reach (a) initial and (b) full operating capability.

The Protector Programme expects to declare Initial Operating Capability this year. The projected date for Full Operating Capability is yet to be established.

Whether he has placed any orders for decoy cruise missile-like weapons since 5 July 2024.

No such procurements have been undertaken in this period, but our requirements are kept under constant review to ensure that our Armed Forces have the battle-winning capabilities they need.

What the out of service date is for MQ-9 Reaper.

On current plans, Reaper will remain in service until later in 2025.

What the target in service date is for MQ-9B Protector.

I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave to Question 25381 on 28 January 2025, to the hon Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Johanna Baxter). There has been no delay to the Protector Programme In-Service date.

Whether he has placed any orders for cheap loitering munitions since 5 July 2024.

As announced on 6 March 2025, the UK has placed contracts, on behalf of the International Fund for Ukraine, to supply Altius 600m and Altius 700m loitering munitions systems to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

What his target date is for delivering a medium range precision strike system.

Current timelines for Medium Range Precision Strike (MRPS) anticipate contract award in 2027 and introduction into service in 2028; stakeholders across Defence are, however, working to accelerate this timeline. Notwithstanding, the imperative to provide this essential capability at pace must be balanced against ensuring we provide a safe and highly effective system ready for the challenges of both today and tomorrow.

Whether he has a target date for Proteus to reach minimum deployable capability.

There is currently no target date for PROTEUS to reach a minimum deployable capability under the existing contract. A large-scale PROTEUS type UAS currently sits outside of the funded Agile work package that UK Ministry of Defence and the Royal Navy (via SPEARHEADS) has placed with Leonardo Helicopters Yeovil, to develop a Technology Demonstrator. As part of the Maritime Aviation Transformation Strategy, the current contract aims to develop technologies and grow evidence across the Defence Lines of Development to inform future investment decisions via the appropriate commercial strategy.

Whether his Department has set a formal target date for the decommissioning of all conventional crewed mine hunting vessels in use by the Royal Navy.

The Royal Navy is gradually phasing out its traditionally crewed and complex mine countermeasure vessels, as modern, autonomous systems are delivered. We do not routinely comment on the timeline for the decommissioning of vessels.

How many E-7 Wedgetail aircraft are expected to enter service in the Royal Air Force.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 July 2024 to Question 432 to the hon Member for North Durham (Luke Akehurst).

What his target date is for RNMB ARIADNE to reach (a) Initial Operating Capability and (b) Full Operating Capability.

Royal Navy Motor Boat (RNMB) ARIADNE is currently undergoing trials and testing prior to transition to operations. The Royal Navy does not comment on future availability and the dates of Initial Operating Capability and Full Operating Capability will be reached in due course.

Whether there has been a delay to the in-service date for MQ-9B Protector.

I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave to Question 25381 on 28 January 2025, to the hon Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Johanna Baxter). There has been no delay to the Protector Programme In-Service date.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 62 to integrate (a) process and (b) policy first.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 52 on reorganising career management around skills groups rather than rank groups for professions.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 55 on making data on (a) the individual, (b) their aptitudes and (c) wider context immediately available to career managers.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 6 on the uplift of the new contractual trust with consequences limit to £100,000 within all top level budgets.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 67 to put in place a system to (a) understand, (b) monitor and (c) improve the key conversations that matter around (i) recruitment, (ii) starting a family and (iii) careers.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 51 on designing career pathways that holistically incentivise (a) skills acquisition, (b) reskilling and (c) upskilling by using all elements of total reward approach.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.

What method his Department plans to use for applying social value into defence procurement in the future.

This Government is committed to bringing forward a Defence Industrial Strategy which ensures the imperatives of national security and a high-growth economy are aligned. As part of the Government’s primary mission to grow the economy and spread the benefits to every region and nation in the UK, this will include supporting policy areas such as innovation, skills and international trade. The Cabinet Office have released an updated Social Value Model that is aligned to the Government’s missions. The Defence Industrial Strategy will include measures that supplement this with action to reform procurement, reduce waste, leverage inward investment and boost sovereign defence industrial capacity to create good jobs and grow UK exports. The Cabinet Office Social Value Model is mandated for all competitive-based Ministry of Defence (MOD) contracts that are in-scope of the Procurement Act 2023, excluding defence and security contracts and exempt procurements. MOD policy is that Social Value Model criteria can still be included in defence and security and exempt contracts where relevant and appropriate, at the discretion of delivery teams and considered on a case-by-case basis. This approach will be kept under review as the Defence Industrial Strategy is developed. MOD delivery teams currently have the option to apply either the previous or updated (as of March 2025) Cabinet Office Social Value Model, as part of a transition period until October 2025 when the new model will be mandated for procurements to which it is applied. The Defence Industrial Strategy is being developed through consultation with a wide range of stakeholders including industry, academia and international partners. Ministers have held a number of roundtables and bilateral engagements with industry. The MOD has released communications on the recent National Procurement Policy Statement and what this means for the application of the Cabinet Office Social Value Model in MOD procurements via a range of standard channels of communication and engagement routes.

Whether he plans to consult industry on a new defence social value model.

This Government is committed to bringing forward a Defence Industrial Strategy which ensures the imperatives of national security and a high-growth economy are aligned. As part of the Government’s primary mission to grow the economy and spread the benefits to every region and nation in the UK, this will include supporting policy areas such as innovation, skills and international trade. The Cabinet Office have released an updated Social Value Model that is aligned to the Government’s missions. The Defence Industrial Strategy will include measures that supplement this with action to reform procurement, reduce waste, leverage inward investment and boost sovereign defence industrial capacity to create good jobs and grow UK exports. The Cabinet Office Social Value Model is mandated for all competitive-based Ministry of Defence (MOD) contracts that are in-scope of the Procurement Act 2023, excluding defence and security contracts and exempt procurements. MOD policy is that Social Value Model criteria can still be included in defence and security and exempt contracts where relevant and appropriate, at the discretion of delivery teams and considered on a case-by-case basis. This approach will be kept under review as the Defence Industrial Strategy is developed. MOD delivery teams currently have the option to apply either the previous or updated (as of March 2025) Cabinet Office Social Value Model, as part of a transition period until October 2025 when the new model will be mandated for procurements to which it is applied. The Defence Industrial Strategy is being developed through consultation with a wide range of stakeholders including industry, academia and international partners. Ministers have held a number of roundtables and bilateral engagements with industry. The MOD has released communications on the recent National Procurement Policy Statement and what this means for the application of the Cabinet Office Social Value Model in MOD procurements via a range of standard channels of communication and engagement routes.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2025 to Question 20673 on Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation, whether his Department plans to implement recommendation 62 on exploiting data available to (a) enhance and (b) feedback to (i) organisation design and (ii) structured establishments.

The Government acknowledges the important work done in the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation (HRAFI) report completed under the previous Government. The Government is delivering a comprehensive portfolio of work to fix the people system, and this captures many of the recommendations of the HRAFI report, but goes much further. The portfolio is organised around five Missions aligned to the key themes of the report. These Missions will form the basis of all future work delivered across the People Function. Defence has been taking forward work that directly addresses the majority of the reports 67 recommendations. To deliver a workforce that is highly skilled and productive, meeting the demands Defence is likely to experience, and helping ensure benefits are felt by our people as soon as possible. Progress is constantly monitored and reported on through the governance structure to ensure real time oversight. The progress made within each Mission is summarised below: 1. Workforce Agility. Delivering the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time will result in a reduced number of gaps across the workforce, increase the percentage of deployable Suitably Qualified and Experienced People and enable more effective and intelligent management of the workforce to support operational effectiveness. This will, in turn be a more rewarding use of Service personnel’s skills, supporting their development and becoming a key lever to satisfaction and retention.Work is underway to improve engagement with veterans, understand how to make better use of the Reserve forces and make improvements to the workforce planning. The Armed Forces Recruitment Programme will deliver a tri-service recruitment solution by 2027. 2. Skills. This Government will build Defence as a world-class engine for a skills-based approach to recruitment, workforce planning and increased operational effectiveness. This includes the Pan-Defence Skills Framework (PDSF) which will start to be implemented later this year, will represent the first important milestone towards becoming a truly Skills-Based Organisation. A PDSF skills-based pay supplement is being developed to be tested with a cohort of engineers from spring 2025. 3. Reward. In direct response to recommendation 24 of the report, work has begun to trial aspects of a Total Reward Approach with a cohort of engineers to help understand what our people really value in their reward and benefits package, and to inform prioritisation of initiatives. Release 1 initiatives are starting to be rolled out and will see improvements for the cohort of engineers and more widely, including targeted Financial Retention Incentive payments to some of this cohort as well as to junior ranks across the Army. The evaluation of initiatives within Release 1 will inform and shape future reward packages across Defence; an approach advocated by HRAFI.Within this Mission, we have also recently announced an improved offer for overseas families, with the expansion of the wraparound childcare scheme. We are also continuing our work to strengthen the Armed Forces Covenant in law. This Government also awarded personnel the highest pay rise in 20 years.Taking a future-focused approach, understanding what drives the retention and recruitment of target generations and using financial and non-financial levers to stabilise and motivate the workforce we aim to attract new talent, incentivise reward and develop a bespoke reward landscape for a better experience for our people and their families. 4. Digital. This focuses on providing a consumer-grade, user experience, which was a big emphasis within the report (chapter three was devoted to this). Delivery of the objectives under the well-established Corporate Services Modernisation and Defence Human Resources Services programmes will go some way to achieving the intent of the report. In line with this, progress is being made with the simplification of policy across military and Civilian systems, supported by the roll out of consistent HR taxonomy. This will deliver an improved lived experience enabled through intuitive, accessible and responsive HR and digital services that meet employee needs in a timely and user-friendly manner; ultimately driving enhanced employee satisfaction. 5. One Defence. This Mission recognises the extent of the cultural challenge that we face in many areas and much of this is captured under our Raising our Standards programme. More specifically, work is underway to review the Service Justice System and Service Complaints process. Defence Reform will make recommendations for a more effective People Department. Underlining the government’s commitment to addressing welfare concerns within the Armed Forces, the Armed Forces Commissioner Bill continues its passage through Parliament. The ultimate goal is to deliver a workforce that harnesses all talents.