Asked by: Nick Smith (Labour - Blaenau Gwent)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Defence Procurement in response to the question from the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent on 25 March 2024, Official Report, column 1253, whether he expects the RAF to meet their quota for successfully trained pilots this year.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Yes.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the letter sent to the Rt hon. Member for Garston and Halewood on 27 February, reference 3427, if he will provide a breakdown of the type of fraud for each year since 2010.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Reports of fraud are recorded on the Defence Confidential Hotline’s Case Management System against pre-determined categories.
The table sets out the categories for the total detected fraud values in my letter of 27 February.
Fraud Category | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 |
Civilian Allowances | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||||||
Civilian Expenses | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |
Civilian Pay | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||
Service Allowances | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||
Service Expenses | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X |
Service Pay | X | X | X | |||||||||||
Cyber and communication | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||
Departmental Income Related | X | X | X | |||||||||||
Exploiting Assets and Information | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||
Joint Personnel Administration, Travel & Subsistence and Other Allowances | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||
Pay Related | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X |
Payment Processes | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||||
Pension Fraud | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | ||
Personnel Management Related | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |
Procurement | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | |||
Recruiting | X | X | X | X | ||||||||||
Theft of Assets | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X |
Other | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X | X |
Asked by: Nick Smith (Labour - Blaenau Gwent)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Defence Procurement in response to the question from the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent on 25 March 2024, Official Report, column 1253, whether the RAF have met their quota for successfully trained pilots in (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22 and (c) 2022-23.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Yes.
Asked by: Nick Smith (Labour - Blaenau Gwent)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Defence Procurement in response to the question from the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent on 25 March 2024, Official Report, column 1253, how many RAF pilots successfully completed their training in each year since 2018.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Training Year (April to March) | Number of Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots successfully completed Phase 2 Military Flying Training |
2018-19 | 34 |
2019-20 | 67 |
2020-21 | 72 |
2021-22 | 73 |
2022-23 | 64 |
2023-24 | 51 |
Note: The figures detailed in the table above are for RAF pilots who successfully completed Phase 2 military flying training. Phase 2 flying training is defined as commencing after completion of Initial Officer Training (IOT) and up until (but not including) Front Line Operational Conversion Units (OCUs).
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by The Earl of Minto on 11 March (HL Deb col 1805), how will the 138 F35B Lightning aircraft be allocated to squadrons.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Lightning Force is configured to be flexible and interchangeable as individual aircraft cycle between the Forward Fleet and periods of maintenance. Squadrons will gain aircraft from the available Forward Fleet in line with their readiness cycle, expeditionary deployment requirements, and associated training and exercises. The size of Air Groups for every Carrier deployment are tailored based on the overall balance of Defence requirements at that time.
Specific airframes are not allocated to specific Squadrons on a permanent basis. As is normal across all aircraft fleets, as part of the readiness cycle and routine fleet management across the Front-Line Squadrons and Operational Conversion Unit, the exact number of airframes operated by individual units varies day-to-day. A Squadron held at Very High Readiness will require a full complement of airframes, while a Squadron on lower readiness or undertaking post Operational deployment leave will require fewer airframes for day-to-day pilot currency and competency requirements.
Our plan remains to procure 138 aircraft through the life of the programme. This procurement is phased; our first acquisition phase of 48 aircraft is underway at present, with the second phase consisting of a further 27 aircraft now progressing through the approvals process, which will form the basis of our third Front-line Lightning Squadron with deliveries expected to continue into 2033. The Ministry of Defence will seek approval for further acquisition phases at the appropriate time.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Belmont (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure transparency and cost-effectiveness in the procurement of defence equipment, given the increasing complexity and expense of modern military hardware.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence is implementing a new Integrated Procurement Model to drive pace in delivery of military capability to UK forces on the front line, so that we stay ahead of our adversaries in a fast changing strategic environment.
A key feature will be a Defence-wide portfolio to prioritise requirements at the departmental level to ensure we achieve greater effect from the available budget.
Spiral development, the delivery of a minimum deployable capability quickly which is then iterated in the light of experience and advances in technology throughout its in-service life, will be supported by new commercial pathways to increase speed and value for money.
As part of a new alliance with industry we will be more transparent about Defence's future acquisition pipeline to help shape markets, focus R&D efforts and build resilience into our industrial base.
In addition, the Procurement Act 2023 will deliver a step change in transparency and openness, with notices mandated for direct awards and publication requirements extended from planning to termination, including contract performance. A single central platform for contract data will give everyone access to certain procurement information, although there will be occasions when information will be withheld from publication on national security grounds.
Finally, we have reformed the Single Source Contract Regulations which provide regulatory assurance on value for money where we procure in the absence of competition. These reforms, which come into effect on 1 April, introduce simplifications and flexibilities to ensure the Regulations continue to adapt to changes in what we buy and how we buy it.
Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December to Question 5777 on Ajax Vehicles: Procurement, when he plans to send the response letter to the Rt hon. Member for Garston and Halewood.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I will respond to the right hon. Member shortly.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the defence procurement system.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Department uses a range of measures to assess the effectiveness of defence acquisition. We have reduced the average time taken to deliver our projects and programmes. But we must go further to drive pace. I therefore announced plans for a new Integrated Procurement Model in my oral statement of 28 February 2024 on Defence Acquisition Reform.
A guidance note setting out the key features of the new model was placed in the Library and is available at Integrated Procurement Model: driving pace in the delivery of military capability - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Sarah Atherton (Conservative - Wrexham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department's assessment of companies against its social value criteria gives equal weighting to benefits that are brought (a) direct to the UK and (b) overseas.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) applies the Social Value Model to all of its in-scope competitive procurements, in accordance with the Cabinet Office Social Value Policy. The MOD ensures correct and consistent application of the Social Value Model through additional policy, guidance, training and through engagement with industry through the Defence Supplier Forum. Its application is monitored through appropriate governance, reporting and reviews.
Weightings are applied to the award criteria, and supplier proposals are assessed qualitatively not quantitively in tender evaluation. The Social Value Model does not discriminate based on where social value is delivered. However where appropriate, and having due regard to UK market access obligations to our international fair-trade agreements (FTAs), procurements may specify, within their social value requirement, the social value to be delivered in specific geographical locations.
MOD currently applies Cabinet Office Social Value rules, and further, Defence specific values. For example, the New Medium Helicopter procurement has a strong weighting for UK workshare and exportability. To ensure the maximum impact of the Integrated Procurement Model, particular in supporting the development of sovereign capability, I will be undertaking a rapid review of how MOD applies social content rules on Defence Procurement.
Asked by: Sarah Atherton (Conservative - Wrexham)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is taking steps to ensure that the social value model is applied (a) correctly and (b) consistently in his Department's procurement processes.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) applies the Social Value Model to all of its in-scope competitive procurements, in accordance with the Cabinet Office Social Value Policy. The MOD ensures correct and consistent application of the Social Value Model through additional policy, guidance, training and through engagement with industry through the Defence Supplier Forum. Its application is monitored through appropriate governance, reporting and reviews.
Weightings are applied to the award criteria, and supplier proposals are assessed qualitatively not quantitively in tender evaluation. The Social Value Model does not discriminate based on where social value is delivered. However where appropriate, and having due regard to UK market access obligations to our international fair-trade agreements (FTAs), procurements may specify, within their social value requirement, the social value to be delivered in specific geographical locations.
MOD currently applies Cabinet Office Social Value rules, and further, Defence specific values. For example, the New Medium Helicopter procurement has a strong weighting for UK workshare and exportability. To ensure the maximum impact of the Integrated Procurement Model, particular in supporting the development of sovereign capability, I will be undertaking a rapid review of how MOD applies social content rules on Defence Procurement.