Written questions by Smith.

What proportion of contracts signed by his Department since July 2024 are with Small and Medium Enterprises.

Awaiting answer.

With reference to HMS Dragon's deployment to the eastern Mediterranean and the planned retirement of Type 23 frigates before the Type 26 and Type 31 replacements enter service, what steps he has taken to mitigate the Royal Navy’s capability gap in escort vessels.

Type 26 frigates are expected to begin entering service from 2028, and all Type 31s are expected to be in service by the early 2030s. This is part of a carefully managed modernisation programme, which will see these new highly capable Frigates enter service, and the Type 23s retire from the Royal Navy following decades of dedicated service. In addition, there will be significant long-term investment in the six Type 45s, to enhance and sustain these world beating Air Defence platforms into the late 2030s.

Whether Royal Navy personnel currently deployed to Bahrain for the decommissioning of HMS Lancaster will be withdrawn for the duration of the current conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran.

The United Kingdom remains concerned over the indiscriminate attacks from Iran across the region, which are putting British nationals at risk. The safety of British personnel and citizens will always be the government's top priority, and we have therefore taken all necessary measures to ensure they are protected. In accordance with operational security considerations, we are unable to comment further.

How many defence SMEs in South West Devon constituency have a) applied for and b) received funding from the Defence and Security Accelerator.

UK Defence Innovation Defence and Security Accelerator (UKDI-DASA) does not track constituency level data but does track data regionally. There have been 237 UKDI-DASA funded projects in the South West totalling £51.2 million, 169 of those were awarded to Small and Medium Enterprises.

How many defence SMEs in South West Devon constituency have a) applied for and b) received funding from the Exploration Fund.

Funding from the Exploration Fund (ExF) is allocated internally to projects within the Ministry of Defence, some of which may include provisions for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs). SMEs cannot apply directly for funding from the ExF. Constituency-specific data for the EfX is not maintained.

How many defence SMEs in South West Devon constituency have a) applied for and b) received funding from the Defence Innovation Fund.

Funding from the Defence Innovation Fund (DiF) is allocated internally to projects within the Ministry of Defence, some of which may include provisions for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs). SMEs cannot apply directly for funding from the DiF. Constituency-specific data for the DiF is not maintained.

When he plans to publish the defence investment plan.

The Defence Investment Plan will be published this Autumn. For the very first time the Ministry of Defence’s Plan will cover the full scope of the defence programme, from people and operations to equipment and infrastructure, to ensure we can deliver the vision set out in the Strategic Defence Review.

With reference to paragraph 2.7 of the Spring Statement, how many housing units will be refurbished in the (a) South West Devon, (b) Plymouth Moor View and (c) Plymouth Sutton and Devonport constituencies in 2025-26; and when he expects this programme of work to be completed.

The Defence Housing Strategy, planned for publication in Summer 2025 will set out a roadmap to deliver a generational renewal of military accommodation. This work includes an extensive review of our Service Family Accommodation to determine how we will utilise our properties going forward. All options will be assessed during the review to ensure a strategic and structured approach is taken.

With reference to the Spring Statement 2025, how much funding allocated to his Department will be allocated to the refurbishment of service housing stock.

The allocation of funding for refurbishment of service housing stock is currently in the process of being determined, aligned to the Defence Housing Review.