Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent progress they have made in delivering actions set out in their policy paper Global Britain in a Competitive Age: Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, published on 16 March 2021 and updated on 2 July 2021.

The Integrated Review (IR) sets out the vision for a Global Britain in a more competitive age, by integrating foreign, security, defence and development policies. It addressed the unprecedented challenges and geopolitical shifts posed by a deteriorating global security environment.

We believe the Integrated Review and Defence Command Paper hold true, but we are continuing to monitor the situation in Ukraine to ensure our strategic approach remains threat-led and in line with the agile planning and delivery mechanisms developed following the Integrated Review. We will continue to review our capabilities and readiness levels accordingly.

Recent examples of progress delivering on the IR's objectives can be seen respectively through:

(i) Defence's commitment of least £6.6 billion for next generation capabilities and research, especially cyber and space, with investment currently forecasted to surpass this target;
(ii) CSG21's deployment in the Indo-Pacific and the permanent deployment of HMS Tamar and HMS Spey to the Western Pacific, an example of a multilateral deployment of cutting-edge military capabilities focused on developing global partnerships and strengthening existing alliances;
(iii) our response to Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, which has shown the UK at its best, united with our allies to deter Russian aggression on NATO's eastern flank;
(iv) from a peak of 5,000 personnel in March 2021 in support of the COVID response, Defence's continued provision of personnel and support across the UK and in support of the Devolved Administrations to manage the pressure on their health services.