Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March to Question 34903 on Defence: Procurement, if he will list the other sectors outside the defence sector who will be consulted on the Defence Small and Medium Enterprise Support Hub.

Development of the new Defence Office for Business Growth is well underway. It continues to consult a wide variety of stakeholders, including Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), prime contractors, Regional Defence and Security Clusters, and trade associations representing their members operating both within and outside of the defence sector.

The Office will also work with the Department for Business and Trade’s Business Growth Service, where relevant, to consult with the non-defence sectors included within the Modern Industrial Strategy.