Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the UK Hydrographic Office has put out to tender public contracts for work connected with the UK Centre for Seabed Mapping between 1 October 2022 and 25 May 2023.

The UK Hydrographic Office has established a contracting framework for seabed mapping activity on a worldwide basis to deliver support across our range of programmes. This includes the potential to support the new UK Centre for Seabed Mapping in the future if appropriate. Multiple companies have successfully competed to be on this framework which will be available until the end of financial year 2027-28.