Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department paid General Dynamics UK in 2023-24 for the Ajax programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024 the Ministry of Defence paid General Dynamics UK £437 million for the AJAX programme. All payments have been made in accordance with performance against the payment schedule and milestone plan within the extant fixed price contract. I am unable to publish the details of the milestones and payment schedule as this may prejudice the Department’s commercial interests.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in (a) France and (b) Spain on the procurement of a new modular training aircraft for the Royal Air Force.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The current RAF Capability Investigation seeks to fully understand the UK's sovereign requirements for future advanced fast-jet training solutions ahead of any potential future international engagement.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when his Department expects to take delivery of new Chinook H-47 extended range aircraft.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The programme will deliver a total of 14 Extended Range Chinook Helicopters to the Department with delivery from 2027.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2024 to Question 16073 on HMS Prince of Wales: Salvage, whether artefacts salvaged illegally from HMS Prince of Wales and seized in Malaysia have been (a) seen and (b) inventoried by UK officials.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Investigations into the illegal salvage of HMS Prince of Wales by the Malaysian authorities are still ongoing, therefore, it would be inappropriate to comment further until they have been concluded.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether artefacts salvaged illegally from HMS Prince of Wales and seized in Malaysia are to be accessioned by the National Museum of the Royal Navy.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Investigations into the illegal salvage of HMS Prince of Wales by the Malaysian authorities are still ongoing, we are unable to confirm the future preservation of the artefacts until investigations have concluded.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans the upgrade to Type 45's Sea Viper Air Defence system to deliver Ballistic Missile Defence Capability will achieve initial operating capability.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Sea Viper Evolution is the first stage of UK Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) with enhancements to the Type 45 Destroyer's Multi-Function Radar, Combat Management System (CMS), Weapon Command and Control (C2), and the ASTER 30 Block 1 missile. Initial Operating Capability (IOC) is scheduled for February 2028, and the UK is currently in an Assessment Phase for future capability upgrades.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse was for upgrading the Royal Marines' offshore raiding craft to commando raiding craft specification in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
A total cost of £11.35 million provides the full capability requirement and extends the through-life management until 2030.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on the Multi Role Support Ship programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave to questions 11950 and 11951 on 7 February 2024.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much funding has been (a) allocated and (b) spent on the Global Combat Air Programme Tempest programme as of 6 February 2024.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The March 2021 Defence Command Paper reaffirmed that that we will invest more than £2 billion in the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) out to 2025, and we have spent over £1.8 billion so far. This is part of a budget of over £12 billion over the next 10 years. The amount that we ultimately invest will be determined at future decision points.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Defence has invested over £1.1 billion in R&D through the Future Combat Air System Technology Initiative (FCAS TI), with a further £600 million from our Team Tempest industry partners to date.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned delivery dates are for (a) HMS Sheffield, (b) HMS Newcastle, (c) HMS Edinburgh and (d) HMS London.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Initial Operating Capability for the Type 26 Class is forecast to be October 2028. All ships are expected to enter service between 2028 and 2035.
To avoid compromising operational security, the Ministry of Defence does not routinely disclose individual out of service dates or specific delivery or in-service dates for warships to avoid revealing elements of the Fleet's long-term schedule. However, the Royal Navy continues to ensure that it has sufficient assets available to deliver operational outputs.