Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled, Government launches Back British industry call to action to boost UK jobs, businesses and skills, published on 23 October 2025, if he will list the skills that an international partner will be required to invest in if a UK defence deal contract is won.

As part of the Defence Industrial Strategy's commitment to backing British businesses, we launched a public consultation on a possible UK offset policy on 23 October. The consultation seeks input on key principles for implementation, including on the nature and level of obligations. It is essential that any offset policy is explored and developed in partnership with the defence sector so we should not pre-empt the outcome of this consultation.