Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps he has taken with Cabinet colleagues to help improve cyber resilience.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) works closely with the Cabinet Office and wider Government in many areas.
The MOD cyber security function works closely with the Cabinet Office, Government Security, the National Cyber Security Centre and others.
This includes formal boards, governance meetings, reports, returns, collaboration sessions and working groups.
A key work strand is the MOD adopting GovAssure which includes reporting using the Cyber Assurance Framework (CAF), and the new Cyber and Digital Resilience Target Operating Model (TOM) led by Government Security.
As announced in the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), Defence will develop a Digital Warfighter Group: a highly skilled workforce that will conceive and develop warfighting capability in a digital age. This workforce will support all other SDR announcements. Our vision is the creation of a new type of operator, whose education, training and equipment supports digital operations across the entire range of Defence activity, from warfighting to Ministerial and strategic data-led decision support. The SDR also announced the establishment and creation of a Cyber and Electromagnetic (CyberEM) Command. This will bring the necessary coherence for Defence and the Armed Forces across the CyberEM Domain – which is highly contested, complex and vital to operational success in all types of operations including warfighting.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish an annual report on cyber resilience.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence has a strong cyber security governance function that reports annually to the Defence Board, Defence Executive Committee and the Defence Audit, Risk and Assurance Committee on the Department’s cyber security risk position.
The Department also provides an annual return to the Cabinet Office using the Cyber Assessment Framework (CAF), developed by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). The Department does not routinely release an annual report on cyber resilience into the public domain due to National Security reasons.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to secure a UK-EU defence and security agreement.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
European security is this Government’s foreign and defence policy priority, and whilst NATO remains the cornerstone of Europe’s collective defence, we recognise the important role the EU plays in the security and prosperity of Europe.
At the informal European Council retreat on 3 February 2025, the Prime Minister reiterated our ambition to seek an ambitious UK-EU Security and Defence relationship, enhancing our collaboration in support of Ukraine and seeking opportunities for improved defence cooperation.
The Ministry of Defence will continue to work with the Cabinet Office and across Whitehall to progress this work.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure the independence of the nuclear deterrent; and if he will take steps to reduce reliance on the US for the (a) testing, (b) maintenance, and (c) replacement of missiles.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her by my hon. Friend the Minister for the Armed Forces (Luke Pollard) on 27 November 2024 to Question 15093.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure the independence of the nuclear deterrent; and if he will take steps to reduce reliance on the US for the (a) testing, (b) maintenance, and (c) replacement of missiles.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The United Kingdom’s nuclear deterrent is completely operationally independent. Only the Prime Minister can authorise the use of our nuclear weapons, even if they are to be employed as part of a NATO response.
We have a close and longstanding relationship with the US on all nuclear issues. One result of this close relationship is that we are able to procure certain non-nuclear components from the US, most notably the Trident II D5 missile, significantly reducing the cost of our nuclear deterrent capability.
Asked by: Manuela Perteghella (Liberal Democrat - Stratford-on-Avon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to require relevant public bodies to ask people whether they (a) are veterans and (b) have veterans in their immediate family for the purpose of ensuring that those people receive any public services to which they are entitled.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
This new Government is committed to putting the Armed Forces Covenant fully into law as part of our drive to renew the nation’s contract with those who serve and who have served, and their families. We will work across Government to strengthen delivery of the Armed Forces covenant and improve the experience of our veterans when accessing public services.