Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that F-35 aircraft purchased by the Royal Air Force contain a ‘kill switch’ controlled by either the manufacturer or the US government that can render them useless.

I refer the Noble Lord to the answer my hon. Friend Luke Pollard MP gave to the hon. Member for Huntingdon (Ben Obese-Jecty) to Question 94529 on 3 December 2025 in the House of Commons.

The Ministry of Defence has Operational Sovereignty/Freedom of Action to operate the UK 'F-35 aircraft at the time and place of the UK Defence's choosing' and to 'procure critical capabilities to be located in the UK'.

This is combined with an in-depth understanding of the aircraft's capabilities that enable Operational Readiness and risk to be assessed against national legislation, the Geneva Convention and our Duty of Care before committing the equipment and personnel to operations.