Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse is of testing those components of a hybrid respirator manufactured by different companies in order to ensure the safety of service personnel.

The investment appraisal for the General Service Respirator requirement was undertaken in line with Departmental policy and considered potential costs, including those associated with managing both the current and new in-service support contracts in parallel until 2020. Overall, the preferred bidder's proposal will provide the best value for money for the Ministry of Defence and the taxpayer.