Asked by: Lord Cromwell (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the difficulties that small and medium-sized enterprises experience in engaging with the Ministry of Defence; and where and when they plan to publish the specific contact details of (1) those operating the £20 million fund announced by the Ministry of Defence on 28 January for military tech start-ups, and (2) the Defence Office for Small Business Growth, to enable small and medium-sized enterprises to contact them directly.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Engagement with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) has indicated that for smaller companies the defence procurement was too slow, too complex, and too hard to navigate. We are giving SMEs a single point of access for advice, support, and opportunities in defence, bringing together services from Ministry of Defence's (MOD) trade associations and investors in one place. Further information, including contact details, can be found at the following website: https://www.digital.mod.uk/sme-dosbg/about-us.
The £20 million fund to offer accelerated contracts to small, innovative British startups is led by the MOD’s Commercial X team which aims to get ground-breaking technologies and innovation into the MOD's hands at pace. The parameters of the fund are currently being determined, and an update will be shared by the end of February. For more information, please contact defcomrcl-comrclx@mod.gov.uk
Asked by: Lord Cromwell (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the need (1) to raise awareness of, and (2) to encourage requests by Field Army units for, the rapid trial of small batches of SME-delivered, battlefield-tested equipment through MoD Commercial X, particularly in relation to innovations from Ukraine; and what steps they are taking to clarify the existence of dedicated MoD funding so that such units (1) are confident in their ability to make such requests, and (2) are informed about how those trials are delivered and paid for.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
It is vital we utilise defence as an engine for innovation and growth including investing in novel technologies. With further investment from this Government, innovation will thrive in every region and nation of the United Kingdom.
Drones, including unmanned aerial systems, are integral to the modern way of warfighting, exemplified in the lessons learnt from the war in Ukraine. The Strategic Defence Review announced a doubling in autonomy investment in this Parliament, taking total Defence investment in autonomy to circa £4 billion.
Work to deliver the Strategic Defence Review recommendations, including on autonomy and drones, will be prioritised appropriately against the threat as part of the Integrated Force.
Asked by: Lord Cromwell (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to equip British soldiers with tactical drone detection capabilities; and what assessment they have made of available smartphone-based solutions.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The British Army continues to revolutionise its fighting capabilities, improving their range, persistence, precision and mass. Learning from ongoing conflicts as well as independent first-principle thinking, the ability of our Armed Forces to counter the threat of highly developed uncrewed air systems is of vital importance. For reasons of operational security and commercial sensitivity, I am unable to disclose further details.