Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the risk of governance breakdown in the Arctic and Antarctic poles.

The Government's approach to national security is rooted in the 2025 National Security Strategy. This sets out our analysis of the international context, including the power balance in the Indo-Pacific, the erosion of respect for the 'rules-based order' and the increasing power projection of states such as Russia and China, including in the polar regions.

Since the publication of the National Security Strategy, many of the trends identified in it have intensified with the UK and other Allies experiencing hostile activity by foreign powers such as sabotage, espionage, cyberattacks and information manipulation. Along with other NATO Allies, the UK reaffirmed our commitment to the NATO target of spending 5 per cent of GDP on defence and security by 2035 (including 3.5 per cent of GDP on 'core defence') at the Alliance's Summit in Ankara on 7-8 July 2026. The Defence Investment Plan, published on 30 June, sets out plans to invest £298 billion over the next four years in the modernisation of the armed forces. The UK has played a leading role in NATO's Eastern Sentry, Arctic Sentry and Baltic Sentry 'enhanced vigilance activity' in response to growing threats towards the Alliance.

We have strengthened our defence and security partnerships in Europe, including through new agreements with France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Turkey since 2025. We remain in intense day to day contact with Allies and partners on Euro-Atlantic security issues, and we continue to work with partners to address global security challenges - for example, leading a global coalition to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.