Written questions by Stride.

When he plans to answer Question 107979 on Defence: Expenditure tabled by the Rt hon. Member for Central Devon on 23 January 2026.

I will respond to the right hon. Member shortly.

Whether any of the spending included by the government in its calculation of spending 2.6% of GDP on NATO qualifying defence spending by 2027 includes financial transactions.

The Ministry of Defence's financial transactions support the retention of critical sovereign manufacturing capabilities and support our strategic objectives. As an integral part of the UK's national security they are included in the NATO qualifying defence spending figures.

Whether capital departmental expenditure by his Department can fund an expansion in the size of the armed forces; and how much and what proportion of the additional defence expenditure announced at the Spring Statement (a) is expected to and (b) could potentially fund an expansion in the size of the armed forces.

Any expansion in the size of the Armed Forces would predominantly result in an increase to resource spending rather than capital spending. However, the capitalisation of workforce costs directly employed in bringing a capital asset into service is allowed under International Accounting Standards. Further detail on how the Department applies workforce capitalisation can be found in the Annual Report and Accounts, available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66aa3e400808eaf43b50db19/Ministry_of_Defence_annual_report_and_accounts_2023_to_2024.pdfThe £2.2 billion uplift to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) budget for 2025-26 will support investment in:· Enhancing the UK's programme of joint exercises with NATO allies to ensure we are ready to respond together to the threats we now face.· Investment in advanced technology such as Directed Energy Weapons, which will revolutionise our Armed Forces' capabilities.· Capitalising on the opportunity presented by the buy-back of the MOD Service Families housing stock, to refurbish the defence estate and provide our military families with the homes they deserve.

Whether the £13.4 billion for the armed forces was calculated based on NATO-qualifying spending; and what his Departmental budget will be in the 2027-28 financial year.

The £13.4 billion increase relates to total NATO qualifying defence spend. This is the increase in cash terms between defence spending in 2027-28 and what the UK spends today. HMT is currently undertaking the second phase of the Spending Review, which will be announced on 11 June 2025. This will set Departmental budgets for three years from 2026-27 for RDEL and four years for CDEL, including for the Ministry of Defence.