Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department have made of the potential merits of mandating industrial participation as part of defence contracts.

The revised Industrial Participation Policy which is currently being piloted asks companies to set voluntary targets for UK content and articulate their plans for opening up opportunities for the UK supply chain. This is distinct from the Ministry of Defence's (MOD) requirement in some areas to maintain specific industrial capabilities onshore. Under the Defence and Security Industrial Strategy, the MOD set out the concepts of Strategic Imperatives and Operational Independence for which the UK must maintain an appropriate degree of control over industrial capability. MOD is clear about those critical capabilities that will need to be procured onshore to protect the UK's operational independence and freedom of action.