Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the answer of 16 December 2025 to question 98882 on Armoured Fighting Vehicles: Procurement, how much funding has been allocated to Project Rarden in the defence budget in each year since 2000 including financial allocations carried forward for accounting purposes.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to his Question 98882 which remains extant. There has been no money spent or specific work carried out under Project Rarden in the last ten years, there is no further data prior to this date.

Project Rarden is a legacy project that introduced the Rarden cannon into service in the 1970s. The reference to Project Rarden in the 2024-2025 Ministry of Defence Accounts is an error – this will be corrected.

I can confirm that this entry relates to ammunition capability which was funded as part of the Armoured Piercing Fin Stabilised Discarding Sabot (APFSDS) munition. The Constructive loss of circa £3.7 million is a result of Defence choosing not to pursue procurement of the APFSDS munition following initial trials.