Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of his Department's capability to improve skills and resources in the civilian MOD while delivering a 10% reduction in civil service workforce costs by 2030.

The Ministry of Defence is committed to reducing Civil Service workforce costs by at least 10% by 2030, as set out in the Strategic Defence Review, while reshaping the workforce mix to ensure that people with the right skills are in the right roles. The Department is confident that civilian workforce skills and capability can be strengthened alongside this ambition through workforce planning, prioritisation of critical skills, productivity improvements and affordability controls.

Civil servants are integral to Defence delivery. The Department will continue to focus the workforce on Government and Defence priorities, investing in future skills while improving productivity through technology, reduced bureaucracy, reskilling and redeployment.