Speeches by Pollard.

“We are seeking the leadership role for UKDI at the moment, but in terms of the clear direction—”

“The model that the Australians use will be a decision for them to take, but certainly a number of international partners are looking very closely at our defence reform, including the creation of the NAD. When it comes to how AUKUS works across the three partners, the three systems are different. We have found that, esp…”

“UKDI is part of NAD Group, yes.”

“I will undertake the usual scrubbing to make sure it is appropriate, but I am happy to share that with the Committee.”

“NAD Group helps to deliver the integrated force plan and the defence investment plan. Effectively, MSHQ creates the integrated force plan. What do they need? When do they need it? NAD Group goes out and buys that, but it is also involved in the problem sets. In the past, defence would say, “Buy this thing. Here is a lo…”

“The SDR sets out the context; the defence investment plan sets out broadly the big buckets in terms of the technologies and platforms we wish to procure against certain parts of that. The demand signal within that comes from the National Armaments Director Group, the NAD Group, which will effectively set the priorities…”

“It is first worth stating that the AUKUS programme is a defensive programme, not an offensive one. It was designed not against one particular nation, but to increase the capabilities of the three partner nations involved with the programme. That is why it remains relevant to all three partners, given the increasing era…”

“Yes, that is why we want to increase direct spend with SMEs and provide a clearer pathway for them. We believe there are SMEs that do not yet think of themselves as defence companies that have technologies that could aid us in the adoption of new novel technologies. That is why from the start of next year, we are stand…”

“As we set out in the strategic defence review, the importance of AUKUS has only increased in recent years. Although the technology and focus of our American and Australian partners is necessarily on the Indo-Pacific, in pillar 1 terms the SSN-AUKUS will provide support for us in the Euro-Atlantic area, as well as confi…”

“Both pillar 1 and pillar 2 have a cross-Government nature. In relation to where we are looking at, we are awaiting the outcome of the US review, which will help to inform which marquee or signature projects we will look to find a political agreement on. To a certain extent, the work on the big projects is awaiting that…”

“I will turn to Tim to answer the broader point, but if I can just set the scene, the Lovegrove review was very clear in the recommendation to the Prime Minister, which we have accepted, that we should focus on a small number of signature projects. Whether that is a signature project, a marquee project or whichever word…”

“Our primary focus has to be on supporting the Australians to deliver their programme on the optimal pathway against the commitments they have made. We also need to make sure that we can deliver our own SSN-AUKUS programme as well. That involves an increase in the drumbeat of production. Our immediate job is to support …”

“In relation to the 30 personnel, none of them required hospitalisation. We are keeping an eye on all of those forces, as you would expect, using the usual medical procedures. Many of them have returned to their normal duties. Normal practice, as we are following here, is that, when there has been exposure to noise and …”

“Yes, I would agree. People need to see the change. Let me reassure you that this Government’s support for Barrow is total. The Secretary of State and the Prime Minister have been clear in their support for Barrow. The royal status afforded to Barrow is a significant sign of the importance of Barrow. The commitment that…”

“I will start with that and perhaps ask Chris to fill in where we are on funding. The stop-start nature of submarine builds that we have seen in Britain over the last few decades severely damaged our skills base and the machinery used to build the bits that go into a submarine, and caused an atrophy of the supply chain.…”

“In the MAN truck case, this is a system working properly. An issue was identified, a rectification was instructed and that is taking place. That system is working as it should.”

“I would challenge that ever so slightly. We are working with our American and Australian friends on a whole range of technologies at the moment. We are looking at whether we can develop signature capabilities alongside them. That is subject to outcomes from the US review and agreement between those three nations. What …”

“I asked for written confirmation. I have received written confirmation from the Chief of the General Staff and the national armaments director who was in place at the time. That note to me set out very clearly, “The objectively gathered evidence shows Ajax is demonstrably safe to operate”. Based on that evidence, I fel…”

“I might turn to Chris for that.”

“That is not quite what I said. As a normal business-as-usual activity across defence, with the platforms that we have, the age of some of them and the usage for them, updates are required on a regular basis. Issuing safety notices is a pretty common occurrence. The system has to work to be able to identify problems and…”