Written questions by Cartlidge.

What steps he is taking to improve sovereign capabilities in satellite development.

The aim is to establish viable UK-based industrial expertise to support national programmes and international sales. The specification for the next generation of the Skynet communications Satellites obligates the bidders to meet certain requirements related to the UK technical and manufacturing content of their offered solutions. The Satellites will be owned by the Ministry of Defence. In conjunction with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd and Defence Equipment & Support, UK Space Command recently launched its first Satellite - Tyche. Tyche represents the first of a future constellation of Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance satellites that the UK will launch over the coming years.

What steps he is taking to support the creation of new jobs in the shipbuilding sector.

This Government recognises the vital role shipbuilding and its skilled workforce plays, not only in our national security but also in the economic prosperity and growth of the United Kingdom (UK).The National Shipbuilding Office provides strategic oversight of all Government shipbuilding activity, driving forward transformative change in the sector. This includes a 30-year pipeline of Government shipbuilding opportunities which provides clarity and certainty for UK industry and supports the creation of UK jobs.

What challenge committees have been set up as part of the Strategic Defence Review; and if he will list their membership.

The second phase of the Strategic Defence Review will run through October and November, focused on Review and Challenge. Panels of external, independent experts have been chosen by the Reviewers to provide robust challenge to proposition submissions, in order to inform the drafting of the final Review recommendations. The membership is evolving subject to availability during the Review and Challenge phase.

Pursuant to the Answer of 15 October 2024 to Question 7503 on Future Combat Air System, if he will set out the details of the capability and other expenditure areas accounted for in the £160m figure stated.

The reduced in year expenditure is not a result of changes to the military capability being developed by the FCAS/GCAP programme. It is a combination of an accounting treatment change, work on the combat aircraft demonstrator project that was carried out ahead of schedule in the previous financial year and revised plans for the delivery of infrastructure and other programme enablers.

What steps he is taking to improve sovereign capabilities in drone manufacturing.

Our industry partners are at the heart of producing cutting edge uncrewed systems for defence. That is why this Government is committed to bringing forward a Defence Industrial Strategy aligning our security and economic priorities. We will ensure that this will link into the government's wider 'Invest 2025' Modern Industrial Strategy, which includes a clear focus on promoting UK industry. This is directly informing our discussions through the SDR as we continue to foster close relationships with industry. The Ministry of Defence is also expanding the governance and assurance around uncrewed systems to ensure that Industry get a clear understanding of what Defence requires.

What steps he is taking to support the creation of new jobs in the defence sector.

This Government recognises the vital role the defence industry plays not only in our national security but also to the economic prosperity and growth of the UK. In 2022-23, Ministry of Defence (MOD) expenditure supported 239,000 jobs in UK industry and a further 196,000 MOD Civilian and UK Regular Armed Forces personnel based in the UK. The Defence Secretary has directed that the Defence Industrial Strategy be developed at pace to support this further.

How many submissions have been received for the Strategic Defence Review.

Over 1,700 individuals and organisations responded providing over 8,000 answers across 23 Propositions. Respondents included Serving and retired members of the Armed Forces, the defence industry, the public, academics, Parliamentary colleagues, and our closest allies and partners, including NATO.

What role artificial intelligence has played in (a) sifting and (b) evaluating Strategic Defence Review submissions.

AI is helping the Strategic Defence Review team comprehend and analyse over 8,000 responses across the propositions, totalling over 2.2 million words. This is enhancing the review team's ability to focus on complex tasks, such as applying robust challenge to submissions through Panel Sessions during October and November. AI is not a replacement for human judgment, but an enabler of greater efficiency and one part of facilitating a more comprehensive Review Process. Decisions on drafting are solely made by the reviewers: Lord George Robertson, General Sir Richard Barrons and Dr Fiona Hill.

How much financing his Department will contribute to the Chagos leasing settlement.

Details of the Treaty agreed between the UK and Mauritius will come before Parliament for scrutiny in the usual manner following its signature. It would be inappropriate to release further details at this stage.

How much funding he plans to provide for the resettlement of personnel leaving the armed forces in the 2024-25 financial year.

Resettlement services are offered to all personnel leaving the Armed Forces, with employment support and training delivered through the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to all Regular Service Leavers. The CTP is the official provider of Armed Forces resettlement support to all Regular Service Leavers, regardless of time served. The new CTP Contract launched on 1 October 2024 and looks to build on the success of the previous contract in providing a ‘gold standard’ of resettlement support to Service Leavers as part of the wider transition support provided by the Ministry of Defence which includes through-career attainment of life skills, and access to Defence Transition Services which offers targeted support for those facing challenges in successful transition. Service personnel leaving the Regular Armed Forces are entitled to access resettlement services two years prior to their discharge date and for two years post discharge. Resettlement services are delivered under the CTP (Defence Commercial Category B) contract with a total budget provision of £110 million over 10 years. We will not be releasing the requested annual figure as this is commercially sensitive.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the agreement to cede sovereignty of the Chagos islands to Mauritius on the risk of espionage from hostile states.

The negotiations between the UK and Mauritius on the exercise of sovereignty over the Chagos Islands were announced in the House of Commons on 3 November 2022 by the then Foreign Secretary. Their aim was to ensure the continued effective operation of the joint UK/US military base on Diego Garcia. We now have this historic agreement, that ends the uncertainty over the future of the base on Diego Garcia, which plays such a crucial role in regional and international security. We have full Mauritian backing for robust security arrangements, including preventing foreign armed forces from establishing themselves on the outer islands, or otherwise undermining the effective operation of the Base, meaning the base is more protected than ever from foreign malign influence in a more insecure world.

Pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2024 to Question 3738 on Defence: Research, whether the spending review process will cover spending on defence research and development in (a) this financial year and (b) the next four financial years.

Spend on research and development will be covered within Departmental plans as part of the Spending Review process. The Chancellor has set out the time period to be covered by this process.

Pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2024 to Question 121 on Armed Forces: Visas, when his Department first held discussions with the Home Office on ending visa fees for serving personnel.

Ministry of Defence officials began engagement with the Home Office in late July 2024 to discuss this manifesto commitment.

Whether the core Global Combat Air Programme will be piloted.

The Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) core aircraft is being designed to be crewed when it comes into service, but the programme sustains an important technological and industrial pathway to developing advanced uncrewed capabilities. That will allow the programme to maximise the benefits of autonomy and artificial intelligence in a crewed aircraft and explore options for wider uncrewed systems to augment its capabilities.

Pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2024 to Question 2108 on Future Combat Air System, how much of the £1.3 billion is (a) Government and (b) private sector funded.

The £1.3 billion figure provided on 19 September 2024 to Question 2106 accounts for the Government funding for Future Combat Air System/Global Combat Air Programme in the current financial year. All of the £1.3 billion of spend this financial year was planned in the last financial year. The £1.3 billion of spend this financial year is on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme, the majority of which is for Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) activity. At the start of this financial year, it was expected that the Ministry of Defence would spend up to ~£1.46 billion on FCAS/GCAP. The forecast was reduced to £1.3 billion due to revised estimates of programme activity from industry throughout the year.

Pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2024 to Question 2108 on Future Combat Air System, whether the £1.3 billion represents the full expected allocation for the (a) Global Combat Air Programme and (b) Future Combat Air System as at the start of this financial year.

The £1.3 billion figure provided on 19 September 2024 to Question 2106 accounts for the Government funding for Future Combat Air System/Global Combat Air Programme in the current financial year. All of the £1.3 billion of spend this financial year was planned in the last financial year. The £1.3 billion of spend this financial year is on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme, the majority of which is for Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) activity. At the start of this financial year, it was expected that the Ministry of Defence would spend up to ~£1.46 billion on FCAS/GCAP. The forecast was reduced to £1.3 billion due to revised estimates of programme activity from industry throughout the year.

Pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2024 to Question 2108 on Future Combat Air System, how much of the £1.3 billion was planned in a previous financial year to be spent this financial year.

The £1.3 billion figure provided on 19 September 2024 to Question 2106 accounts for the Government funding for Future Combat Air System/Global Combat Air Programme in the current financial year. All of the £1.3 billion of spend this financial year was planned in the last financial year. The £1.3 billion of spend this financial year is on the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme, the majority of which is for Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) activity. At the start of this financial year, it was expected that the Ministry of Defence would spend up to ~£1.46 billion on FCAS/GCAP. The forecast was reduced to £1.3 billion due to revised estimates of programme activity from industry throughout the year.

If he will make an estimate of the number of homes on the defence estate that could be brought back into use in the next 12 months.

During financial year 2024-25 the Ministry of Defence (MOD) plans to refurbish circa 200 long-term empty Service Family Accommodation properties, to bring them back into use for Service families. Data for the number of houses that could be bought back into use in financial year 2025-26 is not held as financial budgets have not yet been agreed. The programme of extensive refurbishments to long-term empty houses was launched in September 2023 and has allowed the MOD to significantly increase the number of high-quality homes available to Service families.