Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Armed Forces Recruitment Service contract contains diversity targets.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence remains committed to attracting, recruiting, retaining and developing the best talent from the broadest diversity of thought, skills, and backgrounds, to ensure our workforce is reflective of today’s society and able to meet current and future security threats.
The Armed Forces Recruiting Service (AFRS) will provide a streamlined, single-entry point for prospective recruits, with the aim of recruiting from the broadest spectrum of society to attract the best talent into the Armed Forces.
Under the AFRS contract, Serco, as the supplier, is required to comply with the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) Diversity and Inclusion policy. The contract also includes Annual Mandated Performance Indicators focused on enhancing equality and diversity within the workforce.
As part of the broader Defence Diversity and Inclusion strategy 2018-2030, Levels of Ambition (LOA) exist to guide efforts in creating a more inclusive workplace and are key to attracting and retaining the best talent from across society. It is important to note that the AFRS contract remains cognisant of MOD LOA; however, there is a clear distinction between LOA and contractual diversity targets.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the contract for the Armed Forces Recruitment Service will include specific recruitment targets for the (a) Army, (b) Royal Air Force and (c) Royal Navy.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
We inherited a retention and recruitment crisis from the last administration and it is the policy of this Government to recover numbers in our Armed Forces and to grow the size of the Army. To deliver this we will be working with the new provider of the tri-service recruitment to deliver improvements in recruitment numbers.
From Full-Service Implementation in 2027, the Armed Forces Recruiting Service (AFRS) will deliver against annual recruitment targets and demand, which will be set by the three Services; the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force, via the Command Recruiting Support Plan (CRSP). The CRSP is generated and approved in conjunction with the single Services with the AFRS contract containing a mechanism to adjust demand during each Recruiting Year.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will place an interim report in the House of Commons Library on the findings from the review of (a) blood and (b) urine tests taken from those servicemen who witnessed the tests in the 1950s of Britain's first nuclear weapons as soon as possible.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
This Government is resetting the relationship with nuclear test veterans and those that support them, and we remain committed to listening to their concerns and working collaboratively to address them.
As of 30 June 2025, officials have reviewed over 43,000 files, including files from the Merlin Database, as part of the exercise that is looking at points raised with me about some Nuclear Test Veterans' medical records.
I will update the House when we are in a position to share the findings of the exercise.
More information can be found in my statement to the House here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-06-30/hcws748
This Government continues to celebrate the stories of our nuclear veterans. Most recently the Universities of South Wales and Liverpool led a Government-funded oral history project which was published in early July.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress he has made on the appeal with the Employment Appeals Tribunal on Armed Forces Pensions for people who served in the Territorial Army.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
In reference to the Employment Tribunal of Milroy versus Ministry of Defence. The Ministry of Defence did not agree with the judgment of the Employment Tribunal in this matter, and an appeal against the decision was lodged with the Employment Appeals Tribunal. An appeal hearing date has now been set and is due to convene on 4 December 2025. As this is an ongoing legal process we are unable to comment further at this time.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 July to Question 67413 on France: Military Alliances, whether his Department recognises any distinction between strategic and sub-strategic nuclear capabilities.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK does not categorise nuclear weapon capabilities as either strategic or sub-strategic. The UK and NATO have said that any employment of nuclear weapons against NATO would fundamentally alter the nature of a conflict.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will quantify his Department’s (a) underspend and (b) overspend in financial year 2024-2025.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Department's performance against its control totals for financial year 20245-25 will be set out in its Annual Report and Accounts, which will be published shortly.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the out-of-service date is of FV433 Bulldog.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 8 May 2025 in response to Question 48996.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many and what proportion of the drones that have been supplied to Ukraine were manufactured in the UK.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Where the UK's drone industry can meet Ukraine's drone requirements, the Ministry of Defence sources from UK industry, and this is true of the majority of the spend on drone procurements for Ukraine.
As stated by the Defence Secretary at the Ukraine Defence Contact Group on 4 June, where he pledged £350 million investment into drones this financial year, the majority of the spend is with British companies. The proportion of drone spending spent with UK suppliers has varied year on year but this financial year we are on track to spend over 70% through UK suppliers.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the cost of planned infrastructure upgrades at Rosyth Dockyard; whether those upgrades include the (a) removal and (b) treatment of legacy radioactive materials; and how many redundant nuclear-powered submarines are docked at that facility.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The cost of planned infrastructure upgrades at Rosyth Dockyard are £340 million. The cost includes the requirement to deliver a contingent docking facility for HMS DREADNOUGHT during its sea trial period.
The Submarine Dismantling Project (SDP) includes infrastructure works at Rosyth to enable the removal and processing of all legacy radioactive waste from dismantled submarines. Activity at Rosyth has begun, with HMS Swiftsure being dismantled and a further six decommissioned nuclear submarines awaiting disposal. The above costings include the elements of the SDP that are being undertaken at Rosyth.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of infrastructure improvement works at HMNB Devonport; and whether those works involve the (a) removal, (b) containment and (c) replacement of equipment identified as radioactively contaminated.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The current estimate for the costs of infrastructure improvement works at Devonport including the Naval Base and Dockyard are £5 billion. This important activity, which includes works at HMNB Devonport and investment in Devonport Dockyard, will support the Royal Navy’s military outputs for decades to come.
These works include areas of the Nuclear Authorised and Licensed Sites at Devonport and will include the removal, upgrade and replacement of equipment/systems which have been identified as radioactive.