Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what UK workshare has been negotiated for the Chinook Sustainment Programme.

The Chinook Capability Sustainment Programme remains in the assessment phase. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is working closely with the United States Government to explore how Britain's defence industry could benefit from this potential procurement.

While a final investment decision has not been made, the initial procurement is anticipated to provide UK employment opportunities, with the Chinook production supplier base providing potential additional orders for UK based companies. The majority of the UK workshare is likely to be within the aircraft support solutions. While these arrangements are yet to be formally agreed, initial Foreign Military Sales support will include employment of UK nationals.

The through-life support solution to provide an optimised solution for long-term sustainment of the fleet, directly leading to UK jobs, will be investigated by the MOD in due course.