Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has received representations from small and medium-sized defence companies on difficulties in securing bank accounts.

The difficulties that smaller defence suppliers can have in accessing finance, including opening a bank account, have been raised with the Department and were recognised in the Defence Industrial Strategy Statement of Intent published in December 2024. Tackling barriers such as these to the growth of a better, more innovative and more resilient defence sector is a key aim of the Defence Industrial Strategy and we are consulting widely with stakeholders across the defence and financial services sectors to this end.