Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reason his Department decided to reduce the number of E-7 Wedgetail aircraft it will purchase from five to three.

The E7 Wedgetail will provide a step-change in the UK's Airborne Early Warning and Control Capability. The decision to reduce the scope of the E7 Wedgetail fleet from five to three aircraft was agreed in the Integrated Review, as part of a wider balance of investment across Defence.