Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the full scope of Project Goldweed.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Project Goldweed is currently in the delivery phase. Due to operational and commercial sensitivities I am unable to provide any further detail.
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister for Veterans on 23 April 2025 (HC47398), what further progress they have made on the rollout of Programme Cortisone.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The vision for Programme CORTISONE is to deliver a sustainable, integrated, cohesive and enduring information capability to support the delivery of evidence-based medical and dental health and healthcare outputs.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has awarded a £7.8 million contract to Leeds software company, The Phoenix Partnership to provide a modern electronic healthcare records system called SystmOne for the Armed Forces. This will digitalise military medical records and integrate MOD systems with the NHS.
Scheduled to begin its roll out in 2027, SystmOne is fully secure and compatible with the NHS, meaning that Service personnel will receive quick and seamless care between Defence and civilian health systems, including both new recruits and Service leavers transitioning in and out of the military.
It will replace outdated time-consuming processes for transfers of information between the NHS and the Defence Medical services, be more user-friendly and increase time to care for patients by improving clinical productivity and reducing the admin burden with a modern IT system.
The contract award aligns with the Defence Industrial Strategy 2025 which outlines a commitment to increase MOD spending with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
Asked by: Lord Kamall (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that an expanded Armed Forces Covenant Duty will be backed by (1) measures of success, (2) methods for monitoring the impact of the Covenant Duty, and (3) regular reporting of the findings of such monitoring.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Officials are currently working on refining the Covenant Annual Report, leveraging this established mechanism to assess the impact of the Covenant and measure its success. This report is a key tool for ensuring transparency and accountability, as it is subject to parliamentary scrutiny. The Secretary of State for Defence is legally required to report annually to Parliament on progress in delivering the Covenant across the UK.
As part of this work, officials are exploring ways to improve data collection and develop more robust methods for measuring the impact and success of the Legal Duty. These efforts aim to provide a clearer understanding of how the Covenant is being delivered, ultimately driving improvements in support for the Armed Forces community. The team will continue to identify opportunities to enhance data collection processes, ensuring that the information gathered is comprehensive, accurate, and reflective of the needs of the Armed Forces community.
Additionally, the Covenant Team actively monitor trends through the Covenant website and a dedicated mailbox to identify areas of disadvantage.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 30 January to Question 108701 on Skynet: Procurement, when the Skynet 6A will complete the testing and validation phase.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Skynet 6 Programme continues to progress in support of Defence’s satellite communications requirements.
The testing and validation of Skynet 6A is expected to complete final acceptance activity by mid-2027, leading to issue of the Certificate of Acceptance.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what is the out of service date for Bowman.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
On current plans, Bowman's Out of Service Date will be no later than 2035, and no earlier than 2031.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Glastonbury and Somerton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned legislative timetable is for the Defence Readiness Bill.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Defence Readiness legislation is being considered to ensure the Government has the powers it needs to keep the UK safe in crisis or war, as recommended in the Strategic Defence Review. Legislation will be brought forward when Parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of operating in Ukraine and the High North simultaneously on (a) British Army, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Royal Air Force resources.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Defence continually reviews all current and planned commitments in line with established protocols to ensure they can be fully and appropriately resourced by the single Services. This process includes ongoing dynamic assessment and the allocation of resources as new requirements emerge.
Defence’s planned commitments in relation to Ukraine and the High North have been properly resourced, deconflicted, and present no identified concurrency risks across the British Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force. Any additional requirements arising from future commitments will be assessed through established processes and resourced accordingly to ensure Defence maintains the highest standards of operational output.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to section 5 of his Department's policy paper entitled The Strategic Defence Review 2025 - Making Britain Safer: secure at home, strong abroad, published on 8 July 2025, what assessment he has made of potential impact of possible threats on the Antarctic Treaty system.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Government’s vision to maintain the UK’s role as a leader in Antarctica and an active participant in the Antarctic Treaty system was set out in the UK Antarctic Strategy to 2035, published on 1 December 2025. The Ministry of Defence undertakes regular assessments of the requirements for Defence to support UK interests in the Antarctic, including upholding the Antarctic Treaty System.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the regional disaster response to the fires in the SBAs of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in July 2025; and whether he has implemented new regional disaster preparedness plans in response.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Sovereign Base Areas Administration (SBAA) manages disaster preparedness through the Areas Resilience Forum. Modelled on UK best practice, this takes a multi-agency approach, including both the SBAA and British Forces Cyprus, to prepare and respond to civil emergencies. The Area Resilience Forum conducts regular exercises to enhance preparedness of relevant agencies.
In tackling civil emergencies, the Administration enjoys full, reciprocal cooperation with the Republic of Cyprus (RoC). For example, during the July 2025 wildfires – which took place within the RoC – significant aerial firefighting support was provided to the RoC by RAF CH-47.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish a list of all (a) UK and (b) overseas sites currently used for long-range kinetic drone testing broken down by the maximum range of each location.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Defence uses various sites within the United Kingdom and overseas to test and evaluate operational capabilities. Capabilities are aligned to range standing orders, Training Danger Area limitations and the operational range of the system being evaluated. Given the geographical constraints of the United Kingdom, some capabilities are better evaluated overseas alongside our allies and partners.
I am unable to provide further details due to operational sensitivities.