Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the updated land-use framework adopted in the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK and the Republic of Cyprus (RoC) agreed to a new ‘Non-Military Development’ process in 2014 under the last government. This harmonised the rights to civilian development within the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) with those of the RoC, with certain conditions to safeguard military use of the SBAs. This arrangement has been in practical effect since May 2022, enhancing the prosperity and wellbeing of individuals and communities.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the answer of 8 September 2025 to question 71975, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of expanding the available pan space.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I would like to refer the hon. Member to the answer I have provided to the hon. Member for Huntingdon on 29 August to Question 71975. There remain no plans to expand the available 'pan space' at RAF Akrotiri but the Ministry of Defence is well placed to expand the facilities and infrastructure at RAF Akrotiri should the need arise.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2025 to Question 79283, if he will make an assessment of (a) the effectiveness of hydrographic surveys to improve the safety of navigation in Antarctic waters and (b) the potential merits of increasing the capacity for conducting these surveys.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK Hydrographic Office, an Executive Agency of the MOD, provides products to support the safety of navigation at sea for the UK's Waters, including its Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies - they draw this data from multiple sources including international partners under the auspices of the International Hydrographic Organisation's Hydrographic Commission for Antarctica. The Royal Navy's Ice Patrol Ship, HMS Protector, also carries out hydrographic surveys in Antarctic waters.
The difficulties of gaining high quality data in such a remote and environmentally challenging region are significant and the season for data collection is short. Therefore, there is strong cross-governmental coordination to ensure more frequently visited areas of the British Antarctic Territory are prioritised.
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 potential impact of trends in the level of defence funding on RAF Northolt’s ability to support military operations.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
RAF Northolt is a core military establishment, delivering a breadth of important day-to-day outputs for Defence. There are no defence funding trends which might impact RAF Northolt’s ability to support military operations.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to improve cybersecurity protections for critical national infrastructure.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence takes cyber security very seriously, particularly with regard to critical national infrastructure. We do not comment publicly on the detail of our protections for security reasons.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the recent performance of HMS Protector in addressing threats to sovereign interests in the British Antarctic Territories.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) remains committed to supporting the UK’s sovereign interests and wider commitments in the Antarctic and South Atlantic. HMS PROTECTOR routinely deploys to the Antarctic Peninsula to undertake activities in support of the UK’s interests, including Antarctic Treaty inspections and station visits in support of the British Antarctic Survey.
The MOD keeps all operational activity under regular review to ensure that the UK’s interests in the South Atlantic are supported, and sovereignty of the British Antarctic Territory is maintained. For this reason, BFSAI personnel have recently conducted an Antarctic overflight, providing a sovereign presence in the British Antarctic Territory.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps he has taken to support SMEs based in the UK to bid for defence contracts.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
This Government has already committed to spending £2.5 billion more with defence SMEs. Central to driving this pledge is the recent establishment of the new Office for Small Business Growth which will help simplify and speed up cumbersome processes, provide advice to SMEs and encourage private sector investment. We have also recently announced a £20 million fund to offer accelerated contracts to small, innovative British startups, as well as establishing a protected budget of £400 million for UK Defence Innovation. We're breaking down barriers and opening new avenues for innovation, ensuring that our SMEs can play a vital role in strengthening our defence capabilities.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps he has taken to improve the (a) cost and (b) time efficiency of armed forces procurement processes.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Industrial Strategy and Strategic Defence Review set out plans to overhaul procurement. Our new segmented approach to procurement, supported by accelerated commercial pathways, is designed to enable programmes to get to contract faster and be more cost efficient. We are making progress towards the target date of 1 April 2026 for establishment of the segmented approach in line with the Strategic Defence Review.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his planned timeline is for the operational deployment of autonomous surface vessels by the Royal Navy.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Royal Navy’s ‘Hybrid Navy’ proposition will embrace autonomy in the coming years with the future programme being developed in accordance with the Strategic Defence Review. Uncrewed and autonomous systems will be incorporated into the domain capabilities over the next five years, with the exact numbers and levels of investment apportioned to these systems to be determined as part of the Defence Investment Plan.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing Royal Naval presence in the North Sea.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Royal Navy maintains a persistent and agile presence in UK waters, including the North Sea, and we keep force posture under continual review in light of the threat and operational demand. We will continue to work with allies and partners to deter hostile activity, protect critical national infrastructure, and respond rapidly where required.