Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the European Intervention Initiative in protecting European security interests.
Answered by Leo Docherty
We support the European Intervention Initiative. We believe that it complements existing NATO and EU structures and initiatives. It has proven to be a useful forum for open discussion between European nations on global security challenges and demonstrates that Europe is able to co-operate in new ways on defence outside existing EU structures.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to increase value for money in procurement.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to increase (a) the number of UK nuclear-powered submarines and (b) their capabilities.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
The Department remains committed to its submarine build programmes. Details can be found within the recently published Defence Nuclear Enterprise Command Paper: Delivering the UK’s Nuclear Deterrent as a National Endeavour (CP1058).
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of procuring (CTOL) F-35A aircraft.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the right hon. Member for Wentworth and Dearne (John Healey) on 16 June 2023 to Question 188192.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing further support to Ukraine, in the context of the latest incursion of Russian forces in the North East of Ukraine.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The Government remains steadfast in our support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Prime Minister has been clear we will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. We have a long-established partnership with our Ukrainian friends since before Russia's illegal invasion and will continue to build on this through the historic UK-Ukraine Security Agreement, marking the start of a 100-year partnership.
We recently announced our largest-ever package of equipment to Ukraine, designed to help Ukraine defend against Russian aggression. Alongside this the Prime Minister also announced £500 million of additional funding which will be used to rapidly deliver military equipment support to the front line.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress he has made on the development of the Global Combat Air Program with Japan and Italy.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 29 April 2024 to Question 23110 to the hon. Member for Garston and Halewood (Ms Eagle).
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of retrofitting Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers with (a) catapults, (b) additional angled decks and (c) arresting wires.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
The Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers (QEC) were built to allow for capability changes over the lifetime of these ships. The Royal Navy is committed to developing capabilities that will allow it to build combat mass, whilst remaining at the forefront of technology, and this includes a strong focus on uncrewed air systems. As such, the aviation capabilities of the QEC aircraft carriers will continue to evolve in the coming years and the operation of a wider variety of aircraft is being considered as part of a detailed analysis to scope and assess options. The launch and recovery systems for these new capabilities is currently under review, following the recent successful trials of Mojave and Windracer.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of updating the Integrated Defence Review in 2024.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The Integrated Review Refresh published in March 2023 updated the 2021 Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy which anticipated some but not all the global turbulence of the previous two years including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The refreshed Integrated Review published in March 2023 set out our new approach through an updated strategic framework delivered through four pillars. The department continues to work to implement and deliver its ambition. A decision to refresh the Integrated Review is for the Prime Minister and currently no such decision has been made.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to help support small and local businesses within the defence industry.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
The MOD recognises the vital contribution that Small and local businesses make within the defence industry. UK MOD is continuously working to address issues that limit access for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to defence opportunities, both directly with the department and through prime suppliers’ supply-chains. MOD’s SME Action Plan outlines the actions and commitments we have made to support SMEs seeking to work in defence. Increasing the diversity of the defence supply-chain helps us to identify and exploit innovation and improves the resilience of the defence industry overall.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to improve the combat readiness of the armed forces.
Answered by Leo Docherty
Our Armed Forces are always ready to protect and defend the UK and we continue to meet all operational commitments, including participating in every single NATO mission.
The Defence Command Paper 23 sets out our plan to deliver a credible warfighting force, generated and employed to protect the nation and help it prosper now and in the years to come. This plan will deliver the biggest transformation and strengthening of our national defence since the Cold War.
To support this, defence spending will increase to £87 billion a year by the end of the decade. As part of this, we're investing £10 billion in munitions production to ensure we have rapid production capacity and stockpiles of next generation munitions.