Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the level of damage done by Storm Chandra in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Storm Chandra brought heavy rain to the UK on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 January. This was felt especially by parts of the South and South West previously affected by Storm Ingrid, with the rain falling on already saturated ground, leading to 3 Severe Flood Warnings being issued. Across Somerset, around 50 properties have been reported as flooded, with rivers responding rapidly to recent rainfall and ground conditions remaining saturated. Flood warnings and alerts remain in force, and further rain is expected.
This Government recognises the terrible impact flooding has on householders and businesses, both in terms of physical damage, disruptions to daily activities and impacts on health, including mental health. Those affected should contact their insurance companies as quickly as possible. Affected householders should ask their insurance provider if they will be eligible for Build Back Better within their claim, which can provide for flood resilient repairs over and above the cost for like-for-like reinstatement of actual flood damage that would.
With localised flooding incidents, local authorities have well-established contingency arrangements in place to support their local communities. Local authorities also have discretionary powers to fund grants, loans, or other payments for home improvements. In severe weather events with widespread impacts, local authorities may receive central support to help reopen affected community spaces through the Flood Recovery Framework, however funding is typically deployed where there is large scale and widespread flooding.
Further information can be found here:
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the discontinuation of the Skills Bootcamps programme on (a) AI and (b) automation training in Somerset for 2026-27 financial year.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Underwater robot could improve pipeline and cable security, published on 9 June 2025, if he will list all contracts placed by his Department with ECS Special Projects since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Department has not awarded any contracts to Sonardyne or ECS Special Projects since 5 July 2024.
The Department currently has no live contracts with Sonardyne. However, the MOD has previously completed contracts with the company, such as those related to Diver Tracking and Detection. Sonardyne specialises in maritime security and holds specific contracts in this field, including a £67,691 agreement (active until 2024) for the procurement of a Diver Tracking System. Its Sentinel diver detection sonar is widely recognised and utilised for safeguarding naval bases and ships.
As part of their future strategy and increasing use of technology the Department is considering:
(i) Expanding port and submarine base protection
(ii) Leveraging AI-enabled anomaly detection on sonar feeds
(iii) Improving protection against hostile divers, swimmers, and underwater saboteurs
(iv) Integration into the wider Maritime Protection System for UK critical infrastructure
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Underwater robot could improve pipeline and cable security, published on 9 June 2025, if he will list all contracts placed by his Department with Sonardyne since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Department has not awarded any contracts to Sonardyne or ECS Special Projects since 5 July 2024.
The Department currently has no live contracts with Sonardyne. However, the MOD has previously completed contracts with the company, such as those related to Diver Tracking and Detection. Sonardyne specialises in maritime security and holds specific contracts in this field, including a £67,691 agreement (active until 2024) for the procurement of a Diver Tracking System. Its Sentinel diver detection sonar is widely recognised and utilised for safeguarding naval bases and ships.
As part of their future strategy and increasing use of technology the Department is considering:
(i) Expanding port and submarine base protection
(ii) Leveraging AI-enabled anomaly detection on sonar feeds
(iii) Improving protection against hostile divers, swimmers, and underwater saboteurs
(iv) Integration into the wider Maritime Protection System for UK critical infrastructure
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2026, to question 107516 on Ajax Vehicles: Procurement, what the next milestone is in the Ajax programme that will trigger a payment as part of contractual obligations.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
There is £1.1bn remaining to be paid to General Dynamics Land Systems UK in line with contractual obligations. I am unable to publish the details of the milestone payment plan as this may prejudice my Department's commercial interests.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2026, to question 107516 on Ajax Vehicles: Procurement, how much remains to be paid to General Dynamics under contractual obligations for the Ajax programme; and in how many instalments.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I am unable to publish the details of the General Dynamics Land Systems UK milestone payment plan as this may prejudice my Department's commercial interests.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Ajax armoured vehicles had been delivered by General Dynamics to a) his Department and b) the Army as of 1 November 2025.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As of 1 November 2025:
166 Capability Drop 3 platforms were accepted by the Ministry of Defence and 156 of these were delivered to the Army.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will set out the full scope of Commercial-X.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Commercial X, established by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) in 2022, is a team of Commercial officers dedicated to disrupting and modernising Defence’s approach to acquisition while reducing bureaucracy. Its mission is to deliver groundbreaking technology and innovation to the MOD more quickly. It achieves this through three key approaches:
Notable deliverables to date: delivery of circa 650 innovation and technology contracts with an average time to contract of 31 days, 47% faster than average timelines for similar procurements. The creation of two new platforms to support small, business-friendly buying routes where suppliers can compete for contracts in technology and innovation. Recent notable contracts include: DragonFire, Hypersonics and NATO Allied Underwater Battlespace,
Asked by: Paul Kohler (Liberal Democrat - Wimbledon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the prevalence of (a) drug use and (b) synthetic drug use among the prison population in England and Wales.
Answered by Jake Richards - Assistant Whip
We recognise that illicit drug use in prisons is too high, and are committed to tackling this to improve safety, support rehabilitation and reduce reoffending. We are investing over £40 million in physical security measures this financial year and have funded Incentivised Substance Free Living Units in 85 prisons. We work closely with health partners to identify prisoners with a drug dependency and support them into treatment and recovery and are rolling out naloxone in prisons – life saving medication which can reverse the effects of an opiate overdose.
We are currently unable to publish performance data on drug level use in prisons because due to reduced testing levels, reduced number of prisons with sufficient testing and the need to update the testing panel, the data is currently not sufficient to robustly estimate the percentage positive. Prisons across the estate strive to conduct target levels of rMDT, but in recent years Governors have had to make difficult decisions about how to balance the demands of testing with wider capacity pressures. However, rMDT is only one element of a wider testing regime, which includes suspicion-based testing for those suspected of illicit use, and compact-based testing on Incentivised Substance Free Living Units and Drug Recovery Wings. Our testing regime enables us to monitor a wide range of substances and assess the prevalence of different types of drugs. We keep this under regular review to ensure we identify emerging trends to keep both prisoners and staff safe. Our new drug testing contract supports this by giving us greater flexibility to respond to emerging drug threats, including synthetic drugs.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the answer of 26 January 2026, to question 107234 on Ajax Vehicles: Procurement, by when will he have upgraded all Ajax-family vehicles at a) CD1 and b) CD2 to CD3 or above.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
A. The final planned Capability Drop 1 to Capability Drop 3 upgrades are expected to be complete in October 2028
B. The final planned Capability Drop 2 to Capability Drop 3 upgrades are expected to be complete in July 2028
As the Hon Gentleman will know there are a series of reviews in place in connection with Ajax that will inform decisions on Ajax that will be included in the DIP. I will notify the House when I have an update.