Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to Ministry of Defence: Ministers’ Hospitality - May 2025, published on 26 June 2025, for what reason the Rt Hon Member for Liverpool Garston received lunches offered by Babcock on (a) 26 May, (b) 27 May and (c) 30 May 2025.

To maximise the value of my time on overseas visits, I will sometimes join working lunches with industry to discuss their live export campaigns and priorities. The dates referenced cover a period where I was in New Zealand and Australia to further Defence priorities in the region.

I attended a working lunch with Babcock at their office in Auckland on 26 May to discuss a live export campaign to New Zealand.

I did not attend a lunch with Babcock on 27 May. This was a reporting error in my transparency returns.

I attended a working lunch with Babcock at their office in Perth, Australia on 30 May, to discuss their partnership with the Australian Submarine Delivery Agency.