Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the number of defence technology start-ups that have been established in the UK since 2010; and what steps he is taking to support the establishment of defence technology start-up companies.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not hold data on the exact number of defence start-up companies. In 2021-22 MOD spent £5.715 billion with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) directly and indirectly, which represents an increase from £4.488 billion in 2020-21. We continue to work closely with defence SMEs through the multiple initiatives outlined in the Defence and Security Industrial Strategy and SME Action Plan.

Our support to SMEs includes Defence Innovation Loans made available by the Defence and Security Accelerator, DASA, to help SMEs commercialise mature defence solutions; seven loans have been awarded since 2021, totalling £5.3 million. Also, since 2010, MOD’s Ploughshare Innovations Ltd has supported 5 new start-ups spun out from government intellectual property. The Ploughshare Accelerator Fund enables start-ups to secure development funding to bring revolutionary technologies to market. And the Defence science and technology laboratory’s Newcastle site supports defence technology start-up companies in the region through its AI and data science related research.