Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of levels in the availability of (a) anti-aircraft artillery, (b) electronic warfare, (c) low-cost interceptors and (d) other off-the-shelf mobile air defence systems.

The availability of air and missile defence capabilities is kept under continual review as part of Defence’s assessment of threats and the readiness of the Armed Forces. Readiness is directed through the Armed Forces Plan, in which the Chief of the Defence Staff directs Military Command Chiefs to hold a range of force elements at varying levels of readiness, aligned with the NATO Force Model, sovereign defence requirements, and our ability to respond to crisis. This readiness is assessed against the sum of Availability, Capability, and Sustainment.

The Strategic Defence Review announced up to £1 billion of investment during this Parliament in Integrated Air and Missile Defence, with an early focus on improving command and control and sensor capabilities to ensure more effective integration and use of available effectors. The Defence Investment Plan will further shape the sequencing and prioritisation of future investment, informed by the evolving threat picture.

As is longstanding policy, the Department does not comment in detail on the availability or readiness levels of specific capabilities where doing so could prejudice operational security.