Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
6 July 2026
14 contributions
Topical Questions
After the last Government tied up HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark, never planning to send them to sea again, this Labour Government are bringing back amphibious ships. We are working with the Netherlands to develop a joint capability, and our ambition—[Interruption.]
Mr Speaker, if it takes three of them to take on one of me, keep it coming. We are working with the Netherlands to develop a joint capability, and our ambition is for the first ship to enter service in the 2030s.
+12 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
6 July 2026
5 contributions
Royal Navy Surface Fleet
The defence investment plan sets out plans for a more lethal and larger Royal Navy, based on the hybrid model. Despite a lack of investment in docks and late ordering of ships under the previous Government, I can confirm that the Royal Navy continues to meet operational and NATO commitments. This Go…
As the Member of Parliament for Devonport, where we not only base-port but refit Type 23s, I know that many of those ships that have given decades of service are no longer able to provide the capabilities we need. That is why we are accelerating the out-of-service dates for a number of those platfor…
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
22 June 2026
Point of Order
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I wish to make a point of order in relation to my answer to the urgent question on 15 June in this House. In my answer, I said that the Defence Secretary was
“currently with His Majesty the King”,
as that was my understanding from the Defence Secretary —[…
Commons
Proceedings
15 June 2026
50 contributions
Defence Investment Plan
Before I turn to the matter before us, the whole House will want to join me in recognising the remarkable work of our armed forces this weekend. In the channel, UK forces bordered a sanctioned vessel from Russia’s shadow fleet to disrupt the flow of funds to Putin’s illegal war in the Ukraine. The D…
I thank the right hon. Lady for her question and for the tone in which she asked it. We often have a lot of shouting from Members on her Front Bench, but I appreciate the professionalism and calm with which she asked those questions—[Interruption.]
+48 more contributions in this session
Commons
Proceedings
15 June 2026
Point of Order
Further to that point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. I am grateful to my Devon neighbour, the hon. Member for Exmouth and Exeter East (David Reed), for allowing me to say again that the Government back all 62 recommendations of the strategic defence review, and we are implementing all 62 of those r…
Commons
Proceedings
10 June 2026
5 contributions
Defence Investment Plan
As the Prime Minister set out today at Prime Minister’s questions, and as the Defence Secretary outlined just last week, we will publish the defence investment plan ahead of the NATO summit in just a few weeks’ time. The Prime Minister, the Defence Secretary and the entire Defence team are determine…
I join the hon. Gentleman in passing on my personal condolences in relation to the helicopter crash in Devon, which, as a Devon MP, I know has hit the military city I represent very hard. I come from a Royal Navy family and know many people who fly similar helicopters, and I welcome the cross-party …
+3 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
Defence Procurement: SMEs
SMEs are crucial to our success. Through the Defence Office for Small Business Growth, we are cutting red tape and proceeding towards our ambitious SME spend target of an additional £2.5 billon by summer 2028. Last week we announced, with Sweden, the Gripen contract for £500 million of benefits to b…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
6 contributions
Defence Procurement
We inherited a broken procurement system of red tape, delays and high costs. Some 47 of 49 major defence programmes were delayed or not on budget when we came to office. We are speeding up procurement, buying British and aiming to increase direct SME spend by 50%, which represents an extra £2.5 bill…
As a fellow south-west MP, I know how important defence is for businesses large and small in our part of the world. That is why we have signed 1,200 major defence deals since the general election, and analysis of just 500 of them shows that they are delivering benefit for 8,000 SMEs and micro-SMEs. …
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
3 contributions
Defence Readiness Legislation
Yes, we have accepted the strategic defence review recommendation that we introduce a defence readiness Bill. As the hon. Gentleman will know, readiness measures are already included in the Armed Forces Bill, which will be before the House again tomorrow. Engagement across Government and with indust…
It is so disappointing that all the hon. Gentleman wants is a timetable; he does not say what measures he wants to see in the defence readiness Bill. He does not care what is in it. [Interruption.] We care about the content of the defence readiness Bill: we will get it right, and we will bring it be…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
2 contributions
Lead Ammunition
Lead, like other critical minerals and the broader range of chemicals that go into producing energetics and ammunition, has seen constrained supply over the past five years. That is why we are taking a strategic approach to our munitions management, including rebuilding depleted stockpiles, investme…
I would be happy to meet the right hon. Gentleman and his constituents. We inherited stockpiles that were much lower than we would have liked, and this Government are determined to refill those stockpiles; anything that goes into rebuilding those is important to me. I am happy to meet and discuss th…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
1 June 2026
11 contributions
Topical Questions
This Government are proud to support Typhoons. We have announced a £500 million upgrade for Typhoons, including new radar, and we have helped secure the deal to export 20 Typhoon jets to Türkiye. We are continuing to support the brilliant jobs in Typhoon production at Warton and Samlesbury and acros…
As the hon. Member will know, we are increasing sanctions on Russian oil. [Interruption.] We are increasing sanctions. I entirely appreciate that the Opposition have decided to depart from the principle of cross-party support to play party political games, but that does not stop it being true. We ar…
+9 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
20 May 2026
12 contributions
Defence Readiness
indicated dissent.
I know Members across the House will join me and the Prime Minister, who did so earlier, in sending our condolences to the family and friends of Lance Bombardier Ciara Sullivan, a gifted soldier and horsewoman who died on Friday—a young leader, a young life taken too soon.
His Majesty opened his Gr…
+10 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
15 April 2026
40 contributions
Strategic Defence Review: Funding
We are in a new era of threat and demands on defence are rising. The strategic defence review sets out a vision to make Britain safer, secure at home and strong abroad. The Government have accepted all 62 of the review’s recommendations, and its implementation is being delivered through a whole of U…
Deary me, I see the armchair general is out in full force today. Let me personally place on record again my thanks to Richard Barrons, George Robertson and Fiona Hill for the superb work they did in authoring the strategic defence review. They know more than many the mess that the right hon. Member’…
+38 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
26 March 2026
2 contributions
Gurkha Veterans
I thank the hon. Member for Tewkesbury (Cameron Thomas) for the way he introduced this debate. In particular, I think the whole House is grateful for the detailed description he gave of the very gallant service of Ghanendra Limbu and his experiences serving in the Falklands. The contribution of the …
My hon. Friend makes a strong point and has placed it on the record.
The matter of pensions was raised by a number of colleagues, including the hon. Member for Tewkesbury. As has been discussed, this is a challenging area. We have honoured the historical terms under which each Gurkha served. At the…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
6 contributions
Topical Questions
I thank my hon. Friend for his advocacy for shipbuilding. That is precisely why this Government have brought together all Departments with a shipbuilding interest in a cross-Government effort to refresh our shipbuilding process, and why Defence is leading that work by delivering more orders for our …
Absolutely. Octric does a superb job in keeping our country safe, securing an essential supply of gear for our military. Since Octric came into MOD ownership, it has already recruited 33 additional staff, and we continue to support the company as it seeks to grow and build, in support of our nationa…
+4 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
3 contributions
Defence Jobs: Wales
On 19 February, the Secretary of State and the First Minister of Wales announced a £50 million Welsh defence growth deal, making Wales a launchpad for the next generation of autonomous technology. Thousands of skilled workers in Wales will be involved in the design, testing and manufacture of these …
Having visited my hon. Friend’s constituency, I know what a champion he is, not just for large companies such as General Dynamics but for the wider supply chain. That is precisely why the Department has committed to increasing our direct spend with small businesses by 50% by 2028, ensuring that we a…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
3 contributions
Defence Skills
We are ending the hollowing out and underfunding of defence that we inherited from the previous Government and spending more with British businesses. To deliver that, we are investing in skills: five defence growth deals worth £250 million; a £182 million skills package; £50 million allocated for fi…
I thank my hon. Friend for her lobbying in favour of Carlisle as a location. Having visited Longtown, I have seen her constituents’ dedication and passion in supporting defence, as well as the opportunities there. We are making good progress on our commitment to allocate resources in this Parliament…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
16 March 2026
4 contributions
Defence Jobs: Scotland
Last Thursday, I was proud to launch the Scotland defence growth deal, which will increase the number of defence jobs in Scotland, invest in skills and make it easier for businesses—particularly small and medium-sized enterprises—to do business in defence. Alongside our commitment to increasing nava…
I do indeed. It is noticeable that when the Scottish Government have had an opportunity to invest in defence skills, they have chosen not to. They chose not to when it came to the welding centre on the Clyde, but the Defence Secretary stepped in. Alongside the Secretary of State for Scotland, we hav…
+2 more contributions in this session
Commons
Debate
4 March 2026
3 contributions
Ministry of Defence
Before thanking my hon. Friend the Member for Slough (Mr Dhesi), let me place on record my thanks to the brave men and women of the UK armed forces, who are at this very moment defending not only UK interests in the middle east and the Mediterranean, but those of our allies. I know that the whole Ho…
Well, I had to sit through the hon. Member’s drivel, so he can sit through mine until he finds out the answer to that one. I want to respond to the main points raised in today’s debate by a number of speakers; it is important that I use the time I have to respond to them.
I welcome the clarion call…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Westminster Hall
11 February 2026
11 contributions
New Medium Helicopter Programme
It is good to see you in your place, Dr Allin-Khan. I thank the hon. Member for Yeovil (Adam Dance) for scheduling this debate. I am afraid that he will know some of my answers to his questions, because he has asked me them before, and I will give him broadly similar answers to those he has had befo…
I have been pretty clear on a number of occasions in the Commons that we are not letting this decision time out. Therefore, a decision will be made, which is consistent with what I have said before.
+9 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
10 February 2026
27 contributions
Ministry of Defence: Palantir Contracts
Palantir is a strategic supplier to the Ministry of Defence, providing secure data integration, analytics and AI platforms that help to support operational planning and decision making.
In 2022, the Conservative Government signed a three-year enterprise agreement with Palantir, in light of the grow…
As I said in my first answer, Peter Mandelson had no influence on the decision to award this contract; it was a decision made by the Secretary of State, and it was his decision alone.
As the shadow Secretary of State well knows, this enterprise agreement builds on the one that Conservative Minister…
+25 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
2 February 2026
8 contributions
Topical Questions
I have read it to the hon. Gentleman three times. Do I have to read it to him a fourth time for him to start understanding this? No wonder the Conservatives do not want to admit that they started the negotiations over Diego Garcia. They do not want anyone knowing that because they are clearly not pr…
I am not going to read it to him a fifth time—my God! The hon. Member is not being serious. He also knows, as a former Defence Minister, that we do not comment on the storage of nuclear weapons, but I am happy to read it to him again any time he wants, so that he can note the word “weapons” in there…
+6 more contributions in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
2 February 2026
2 contributions
Nuclear Deterrent
The United Kingdom’s nuclear deterrent is completely operationally independent—only the Prime Minister can authorise the firing of the UK’s nuclear weapons, even if they are deployed as part of a wider NATO response—and £15 billion is being invested in the sovereign warhead programme over the course…
Our nuclear deterrent is operationally independent. It supports thousands of jobs up and down the country. We will continue to invest in the skills and technologies required to keep our continuous nuclear deterrent at sea. We will continue to invest in that sovereign capability, but we will also con…
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
2 February 2026
3 contributions
Naval Shipbuilding
This Government have stepped up our support for naval shipbuilding. We have secured the largest shipbuilding export in British history, with the Type 26 being sold to Norway; we have invested in strategically important infrastructure; and we are driving naval programmes in UK shipyards. The shipbuil…
Serco has indeed awarded a contract to Damen as part of its provision of tugs for the UK military. We have set out clearly our intention that more of our rising defence Budget should be spent with British companies, supporting the construction of more naval assets in British shipyards. We will conti…
+1 more contribution in this session
Commons
Oral Questions
Defence
2 February 2026
3 contributions
R&D Defence Spending: Economic Impact
To deter and defeat aggression, this Government are investing in innovation in the latest capabilities for our forces. R&D is critical to maximising defence ability to be an engine for growth. It is this Government who have ensured that 10% of our equipment plan must be spent on novel technologi…
The hon. Member is absolutely right to say that defence innovation has considerable positive spill-over effects for the wider economy. That is one of the reasons why this Government are investing in technologies that have dual use potential—not just to give our fighting forces the equipment they nee…
+1 more contribution in this session