Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 31 of his Department's Defence Investment plan, published 30 June 2026, what new measures he has introduced on single source contract regulations to incentivise on-time delivery and productivity improvements.

The Department has been working at pace on a review of the Single Source Contract Regulations, which governs some of the nation’s largest and most strategically important defence procurements and accounts for around half of defence spending on equipment.

In May 2026, we changed the law to increase the amount of profit available to suppliers delivering priority outcomes, such as faster delivery or greater productivity. We will be introducing further legislative changes this year to incentivise innovation, reduce the regulatory burden on Small and Medium Enterprise and encourage our suppliers to take on more risk bearing contracts, a Defence Industrial Strategy commitment.