Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the Government Procurement Agreement of the World Trade Organisation on the (a) retention and (b) enhancement of UK defence contracts.

The UK intends to accede to the World Trade Organisation Government Procurement Agreement on the same terms as is currently the position for the UK as an EU Member State. The UK's final market access offer was agreed in principle on 27 November 2018. As a result, while the treatment of defence contracts is expected to remain unchanged, the Ministry of Defence is contributing to work across Government to understand the implications and opportunities of accession.