Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 19 May 2025 to Question 17 on European security, what recent discussions he has had with drone component suppliers to ensure that the UK military is up to date when it comes to drone technology and capability.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Defence routinely engages with drone component suppliers to iterate and spiral develop capability in close cooperation with allies.
One of the key mechanisms to ensure that Defence is up to date with the latest developments in drone technology and associated tactics is through our support to Ukraine, where drone capabilities are developed and exploited in cooperation with drone component suppliers. As outlined in the Strategic Defence Review, Defence will continue to invest in drone technology to advance our capabilities in tandem with UK industry.
Asked by: Paul Holmes (Conservative - Hamble Valley)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the final report by the US National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence on National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of China’s policy to pursue a global collection mechanism for Chinese government genetic databases.
Answered by James Heappey
The UK is committed to promoting the ethical development and deployment of AI and other new technologies, in the UK and overseas, and we closely monitor related threats. The Ministry of Defence is supporting the National Science and Technology Council to develop our strategic understanding of the opportunities, threats and implications posed by new and emerging technologies. This includes close working with allies, partners, academia and civil society. We will shortly publish the first Defence AI Strategy setting out our approach to exploiting these critical technologies, as well as our intent to influence and shape global AI developments to promote security, stability, and democratic values.