Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure UK manufacturers will be able to continue to engage with EU defence research and development programmes after the UK has left the EU.

The exact nature of our future EU relationship will be determined as part of the Brexit negotiations.

We are seeking a deep and special partnership with our European partners after we leave the EU, which will encompass both economic and security cooperation. We have the largest European defence budget and we want to continue contributing to the security of Europe, building and enhancing our wider cooperation and using our range of defence and security capabilities, our global standing, and our networks and influence.

The UK will continue to have all of the rights and obligations that membership brings, including receiving European funding, up until the point we leave the EU. We recognise that many organisations across the UK which are in receipt of EU funding, or expect to start receiving funding, want reassurance about the flow of funding they will receive. In line with wider commitments to Horizon research funding, funding received from the EU's defence research programme prior to our exit from the EU will be guaranteed after we leave.