Defence Investment Plan

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Tuesday 16th June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Coaker (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord for his question. The original assumption was that we would look towards 2035 as when we need to be ready. However, with the intelligence and the work being done, we are looking more towards 2030, and that is in addition to what we do now. Those are the parameters within which government is operating, and that is the work the DIP seeks to address.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, does my noble friend agree that it is not just about how much we spend but ensuring that it is spent effectively? What is being done within the MoD to ensure that procurement is improved? Perhaps he might consult our noble friend Lord Drayson, who was a very good Procurement Minister. Will he also explain why we have more civil servants in the MoD than we have soldiers, and more admirals than we have ships?

[Lord Coaker (Lab)]

We are trying to increase the number of ships, so hopefully in the end we will catch up. The personnel we have, we seek to employ gainfully. We have reformed and changed how procurement operates within the MoD. We have a new national armaments director running a National Armaments Directorate, which is seeking to reform and change how we procure so that we ensure that whatever money is spent is spent as effectively and efficiently as it can be.