Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether a senior manager in his Department has been given the portfolio for leading on departmental sustainability.

In line with Government policy and the aims of the Greening Government Commitments, the Ministry of Defence is committed to addressing and adapting to the effects of climate change and in mitigating the impacts of our activities.

In March 2021 I published the Ministry of Defence Climate Change and Sustainability Strategic Approach (publishing.service.gov.uk) which shows the scale of ambition to address these challenges and the practical actions that are and need to be taken. Further information on the progress the Department is making can be found in the MOD's Annual Report which is published on Gov.uk.

A new Climate Change and Sustainability (CC&S) Directorate was also established in 2021 to catalyse the ambition and actions within the Strategic Approach. It is led by a dedicated Director of Climate Change and Sustainability working through new governance and supported by a non-executive Director focused on the CC&S agenda.

The Directorate continues to build the Department's programme to meet our long-term ambitions and harness the value of sustainability through policy and process change.