Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of UK participation in EU defence industrial programmes on (a) the AUKUS agreement and (b) other existing defence procurement partnerships.

As the Strategic Defence Review recognised, international partnerships are crucial for the UK’s security and prosperity. The UK remains firmly committed to the AUKUS partnership and is working closely with the US and Australia at all levels to maximise the benefits and opportunities which AUKUS presents for our three nations. The new Security and Defence Partnership with the EU is complementary to our existing work and the full range of our defence partnerships.