Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Baroness Goldie on 22 November (HL Deb cols 1272–5), what is the total cost of the contract; and how much of that will be spent in the UK accruing (1) corporation tax, (2) National Insurance contributions, and (3) income tax.

No contract has yet been signed. His Majesty's Government anticipates that the value of the contract will be £1.6 billion. The majority of this sum will be spent in the United Kingdom. As with any contract it is for the contractor to agree a price that takes into account its costs, including normal business costs such as taxes and national insurance payments.