Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what financial assumptions his Department has made on the cost of (a) spare parts, (b) software upgrades and (c) logistics support for the F-35 programme; and whether those costs are borne by his Department or the supplier for that programme.

The costs of F-35 spares, software upgrades, and logistic support are included within the Department's financial planning assumptions for the F-35 programme. The F-35 Joint Program Office procures all of these elements on behalf the F-35 Partner Nations.