Written questions by Akehurst.

What steps his Department is taking to assess the potential for UK companies to access future partnership and export opportunities arising from the UK/EU–Ukraine Defence Innovation Corridor.

Ministry of Defence officials met representatives of the UK/EU-Ukraine Defence Innovation Corridor in March 2026 and advised on how any proposal could best align with existing UK-Ukraine defence engagement. We will keep early‑stage initiatives under review. Regarding helping UK companies exporting to Ukraine, building on our seventh and largest Trade Mission programme to Ukraine in March 2026; we are opening a Business Centre in Kyiv later this year, as we move to a permanent presence in Ukraine. This will help UK firms identify collaboration, partnership, and future export opportunities, for the UK and Ukraine's mutual benefit.

What assessment the Department has made of the potential strategic benefits of restoring sovereign UK capability for the manufacture, maintenance and through-life support of small arms used by the British Armed Forces.

The potential strategic benefits of restoring sovereign UK capability for the manufacture, maintenance and through-life support of small arms include greater strategic resilience, operational independence, skilled jobs, export opportunities and the development of a strategic partner relationship between the Ministry of Defence and industry. This could contribute to the wider ambition of the Defence Industrial Strategy to deliver a resilient UK industrial base and make Defence an engine for growth. Project GRAYBURN is in the Concept Phase. As such, it is considering the potential strategic benefits of restoring sovereign UK capability for the manufacture, maintenance and through-life support of small arms used by the Ministry of Defence.

What steps his Department is taking to incorporate lessons from Ukraine into the development of UK air and missile defence capabilities, including counter-drone systems and electronic warfare.

The UK’s Armed Forces are learning much from the war in Ukraine, particularly the need for a much faster ‘learn and adapt’ cycle to accelerate developments in our capabilities, doctrine, and tactics. More broadly, the Strategic Defence Review considered all aspects of Defence, including the capabilities required by the UK to meet the challenges, threats, and opportunities of the twenty-first century. Integrated Air and Missile Defence investments will be prioritised appropriately against the assessed threat picture as part of the future Integrated Force. Work to deliver the Strategic Defence Review recommendations, including on Integrated Air and Missile Defence, drones and electromagnetic warfare will be set out in the forthcoming Defence Investment Plan.

What the proposed timeline is for Project GRAYBURN, including the anticipated date of contract award; and what assessment his Department has made of the principal risks to delivering the first 10,000 new weapons into service by 2030.

Project GRAYBURN is currently in the concept phase with the aim of identifying and understanding requirements. As the exact delivery schedule will be determined in due course, I am unable to provide further detail at this stage.

What assessment he has made of the cumulative impact of delays to Challenger 3, Boxer, RCH155 and the Protected Mobility fleet on the British Army’s war‑fighting ability.

The ability to conduct high-end warfighting remains the core of the British Army, including being able to deploy a lethal warfighting Division that is fit for the modern battlefield. The Department conducts an annual Capability Audit to assess our ability to meet Defence commitments and policy objectives. This process considers the impact of any changes or delays across all major programmes. While detailed assessments cannot be shared for operational security reasons, we continue to monitor these programmes closely and manage any associated risks.

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of converting Type 31 frigates into air‑defence or land‑attack variants through installation of Mk41 Vertical Launch Systems.

The Type 31 frigate has been designed with flexibility and adaptability in mind, including provision within its baseline design to accommodate a range of future capability enhancements as required.As part of routine capability planning, the Ministry of Defence keeps potential upgrades to all Royal Navy platforms under regular review.

Whether his Department has examined options for cooperation with France on the M51.4 submarine‑launched missile.

The UK and France work closely together on a range of nuclear research and technology matters, including as part of the 2010 Teutates Treaty. Our deepening co-operation under the 2025 Northwood Declaration includes nuclear policy, capabilities and operations. The UK will continue to rely on its Trident II D5 submarine launched ballistic missiles, which we procure from the United States, significantly reducing the cost of our nuclear deterrent capability. The Trident missile system remains the most reliable weapons system in the world and the government has absolute confidence that the UK’s deterrent remains effective, dependable, and formidable.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the difference in time horizons between venture capital of three to four years, and defence procurement cycles that exceed a decade, on private investment in the domestic defence sector.

Venture capital is only a sub-section of the capital available to support defence and our transition to warfighting readiness; venture capital is most suited to innovative, high-growth potential companies, not the large defence programmes with the longest timelines and procurement cycles. Through Procurement Segmentation, as announced in the Strategic Defence Review and the Defence Industrial Strategy, we are establishing a ‘rapid commercial exploitation’ segment and distinct acquisition pathways which will enable a time-to-contract of three-months for innovative technologies, more closely aligning the timelines between investors and defence. This will drive the investability and bankability of the defence sector, in parallel to the support offered by the newly established UK Defence Innovation and wider public financial institutions (for example, the British Business Bank). The Defence Finance and Investment Strategy, to be published in Spring, will provide a comprehensive view of the measures to increase the available capital to improve warfighting readiness while also driving growth.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the retention payment introduced by the armed forces to private soldiers and lance corporals in 2025 on recruitment and retention of personnel.

The Army forecasts the impact to be in the region of 290 retentions to date. While there is no way to isolate the impact of this specific initiative from wider retention efforts, in seeking approval for this initiative, an assessment was made that c300 service personnel would be retained per year with an indicative saving over the cost of replacement. Therefore, the overall assessment is that Army Retention Payment is performing as anticipated.

What steps his Department is taking to improve the medical capacity of the armed forces.

The Strategic Defence Review recognises rebuilding medical capacity and capability within Defence is critical to ensure our Armed Forces remain fighting fit in peacetime and are prepared to meet operational demands when at war. Defence Medical Services (DMS) is working with the NHS to understand and improve system-wide capacity and capability. This work has included a series of exercises to explore the UK’s ability to deal with casualties across a range of scenarios up to and including warfighting. The DMS and NHS are also engaged in work to restore deployability for service personnel. The Department ensures military medics maintain the skills they require to support military operations across the globe with over 1000 military Doctors, Nurses and Allied Health Professionals based in 56 NHS trusts across the UK. Further, working with allies, through the NATO Medical Action Plan, the Department is focused on addressing priority challenges in workforce; mass casualty planning; patient evacuation; and medical logistics to improve the medical capacity of the Armed Forces.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that original equipment manufacturers pay their supply‑chain suppliers within 30 days; what reporting and transparency requirements apply to foreign prime contractors in respect of their payment practices; and what guidance his Department issues to original equipment manufacturers that seek to delay payments to suppliers in order to manage cash flow for overseas parent companies.

The Ministry of Defence conducts regular spot checks on all contracts in scope of PPN 021: Payment Spot Checks in Public Sub-Contracts to ensure compliance with the 30-day payment term across the supply chain. The results of these checks are published online, and appropriate action would be taken against suppliers failing to meet the payment requirements of the Procurement Act 2023. All suppliers and their subcontractors are encouraged, through tender documentation, to commit to good payment practices by registering with the Fair Payment Code. This demonstrates their commitment to timely and fair payment practices.

What steps his Department takes to help ensure that overseas‑owned original equipment manufacturers keep work in the UK supply chain in the event of delays or pauses to defence programmes.

The Defence Industrial Strategy sets out the commitment to make the UK a defence industrial leader by 2035, ensuring the UK becomes Europe’s leading defence exporter and the most attractive country in the world to grow a defence business. By reducing regulatory barriers, supporting our small and medium sized enterprises together with the work of our Defence Supply Chain Capability Programme, we are fostering closer collaboration between the Ministry of Defence and industry, helping shape the market, and embedding resilience by design into our supply chains.

How many large-scale brigade-level live exercises have been conducted by the armed forces in the previous five years; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of those exercises on operational readiness.

Over the past five years, the British Army, Royal Marine Commandos, and Royal Air Force have participated in 12 large-scale brigade-level live exercises, alongside multiple multinational training operations.

What proportion of serving British soldiers are classified as medically fit for immediate deployment; and how this compares to NATO readiness benchmarks.

The vast majority of our Service Personnel - around 90% - are deployable at any point, with most of the remaining members of our Armed Forces employed in wider military roles.

What progress has been made on improving the lethality of the armed forces since the publication of the Strategic Defence Review.

Whether it is drones, counter-drone systems, ASGARD or Atlantic Bastion. We have made significant improvements to lethality of the Armed Forces since the Strategic Defence Review’s publication. We are delivering the capabilities and skills needed for the new operating environment. We have increased the number of uncrewed systems used by our Armed Forces, with delivery of over 8000 since July 2024, alongside developing the digital tools to support our warfighters, and establishing the Centre for Uncrewed Systems to cohere the skills and development of this crucial technology. We are fostering the UK's next generation autonomous technology base and working with European partners on our new generations of munitions and deep precision strike as we continue to drive our Armed forces' lethality. For example, we have also signed a multi-million contract with UK start-up Cambridge Aerospace to supply new interceptor missiles and launchers to the UK Armed Forces and Gulf partners. These are designed to counter Shahed-style attack drones, with the first deliveries to the MOD expected in May. Our work to strengthen our armed forces is never done. We will set out how we are implementing the Strategic Defence Review's recommendations and improve the lethality and effectiveness of our Armed Forces through our forthcoming Defence Investment Plan.

What assessment he has made of the potential merits of adapting Type 31 frigates for enhanced air defence or strike roles to support carrier operations.

The Type 31 frigate has been designed as a capable, flexible and affordable general-purpose platform that will undertake a wide range of global tasks. The Department routinely assesses the potential merits of adapting Royal Navy (RN) platforms, including Type 31, to respond to evolving operational requirements.As with all RN platforms, options for incremental upgrades are kept under regular review. For security and operational reasons, the Ministry of Defence does not comment on detailed capability development plans in the public domain.

What assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of trends in the levels of demand among allied navies for specialised anti-submarine warfare frigates.

The Government continues to review trends in allied demand for specialised anti‑submarine warfare capabilities as part of its assessment of the evolving and growing undersea threat.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure sufficient artillery ammunition stockpiles for sustained operations in a peer-on-peer conflict.

The hon. Member will know UK stocks have been reduced from gifting to Ukraine since Putin’s full-scale invasion. The Strategic Defence Review sets out the plan to recover stockpiles - munition stockpile levels are actively reviewed to ensure current holdings are balanced against threats, availability, industrial capacity and evolving technology. The announcement of six new energetics and munitions factories are part of this effort. It would not be appropriate to comment on specific stockpile levels, as this information is operationally sensitive.

What assessment he has made of the capacity of the UK shipbuilding industry to sustain the production of complex warships.

The UK has a strong sovereign shipbuilding industry with a long history of delivering complex vessels for the Royal Navy. This expertise is also recognised by our allies and partners, including the £10 billion strategic partnership deal to export the Type 26 Frigate class to Norway that will be built by BAES on the Clyde. In Rosyth, Babcock Marine recently achieved the simultaneous steel cutting and rolling out of two Type 31 Frigates, highlighting the growing capacity to deliver concurrent builds. The work to recapitalise Harland and Wolff by Navantia is on track to return major naval vessel builds to Belfast. The Type 26, Type 31 and Fleet Solid Support programmes, coupled with export success, have driven investment in the capacity and capability of our UK shipyards with new infrastructure, panel line technology and the development of our future skilled workforce. This capacity extends to our wider supply chain and to companies like APCL Group and our small and medium shipyards which play a vital role in delivering the Navy’s current and future ambitions. The £20 million Government investment to support the restoration of Inchgreen dry dock on the Clyde also secures additional strategic capacity. The Shipbuilding and Maritime Technology Action Plan will set out further detail on our future ambitions for the sector and the actions we will take to ensure we sustain and grow capacity, capability and resilience in our UK shipbuilding sector and our wider sovereign supply chain.

What estimate he has made of the total value of recent UK warship exports, including those of the Type 26 and Type 31 frigate programmes.

The UK continues to support defence exports through the provision of design expertise, government‑to‑government engagement, and industrial collaboration. Recent successes include an agreement worth £10 billion to supply Norway with Type 26 frigates, and the selection of the Type 26 design by the navies of both Canada and Australia. The Arrowhead 140 design, upon which the Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigate is based, has also been exported to Poland and Indonesia. These programmes demonstrate the competitiveness of UK naval design and contribute to sustaining the nation’s maritime industrial base.