Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with SMEs on the development of the Defence Industrial Strategy.

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) hold a crucial place in UK defence. They are the backbone of the UK economy and are vital to delivering the innovation, expertise and agility that we need now and in the future.

The Defence Industrial Strategy will set the conditions to unlock the full potential of SMEs. To expediate this, in March the Government unveiled substantial additional support for defence SMEs, including a support hub offering guidance on accessing the defence supply chain and the upcoming publication of a new SME spending target for defence. These measures are being developed in collaboration with industry including SMEs.