Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to incorporate the Personal Hard Armour Framework into the Land Industrial Strategy.

The Personal Hard Armour Framework will facilitate the procurement of personal ballistic protection through the pre-approval of suppliers and will deliver agility, consistency, and financial savings in the procurement of personal hard armour - whilst encouraging innovation and optimising organisational outputs. Market Engagement has been conducted via a small and medium sized enterprise engagement day. A key objective of setting up and promoting the framework is to broaden and strengthen our supply base for Personal Hard Armour, giving the UK the potential to surge and meet evolving demands, as well as further building our understanding of the wider market.

The Framework is in alignment with the strategic aim of this Government’s Defence Industrial Strategy as set out in the Statement of Intent, and Army’s Land Industrial Strategy, to combine the imperatives of national security and a high-growth economy.