Asked by: Clive Jones (Liberal Democrat - Wokingham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment her Department has made of the long-term costs of post-flood clean-up operations with the potential savings from investing in proactive flood prevention measures, such as enhanced maintenance, equipment procurement, and staffing for flood control infrastructure.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency is delivering the Government’s flood and coastal risk management (FCRM) Investment Programme.
For every £1 spent in the Investment Programme improving protection from flooding and coastal erosion, around £8 of property damages is avoided.
Post flood clean-up costs are considered as part of the wider economic appraisal of flood investment projects.
A new 3-year £4.2 billion FCRM Investment Programme will start in April 2026, where new projects will align with the strategic objectives set out within the Government’s new funding rules announced in October 2025.
The new investment programme will also reduce deterioration and target repairs to flood defence assets, benefitting an additional 14,500 properties in England.
The Environment Agency updated its National Flood Risk Assessment in 2025. This provides the best available evidence to inform the development of flood mitigation strategies.
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what criteria the Defence Office for Small Business Growth will use to define (1) small businesses, and (2) small contracts.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence’s definition of a SME is aligned with that outlined in the Procurement Act 2023, namely they must have fewer than 250 staff, less than or equal to £44 million in annual turnover or a balance sheet total of less than or equal to £38 million, and independent of any larger parent organisation. We would consider small contracts to be those of a total contractual value of £1 million or less.
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 21 January 2026, to question 106072 on Ajax Vehicles: Procurement, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of the issue raised in the post-exercise report for Exercise Scorpion Cyclone that highlighted concerns that the fuel consumption of the vehicle is 16 litres per hour and is unsustainable for deep recce.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Ajax Vehicle range and fuel consumption continue to be proved through trials and exercises. Data to date supports the vehicle being fit for a deep reconnaissance role.
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: 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: 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.
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 21 January 2026, to question 106072 on Ajax Vehicles: Procurement, what assessment has he made of the potential impact of the issue raised in the post-exercise report for Exercise Scorpion Cyclone that highlighted concerns that a stoppage on the 40mm CTA cannon causes an enforced 30min wait period that means the chain gun is inoperable and the vehicle is unarmed.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Trials and exercises are used to identify equipment issues. There is a process to ensure any issues are identified and rectified as part of the project life cycle.