Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Royal Navy's Proteus programme will receive funding allocated in the Defence Investment Plan.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Work to deliver the Strategic Defence Review recommendations, including on autonomy, will be prioritised appropriately against the assessed threat picture as part of the future Integrated Force and will be set out in the forthcoming Defence Investment Plan.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether around-the-clock staffing is in place at HMNB Portsmouth.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
HM Naval Base Portsmouth operates on a continuous 24‑hour basis. Appropriate Duty Staff are in place at all times to maintain the safety, security, and operational availability of the site. He will recall from his time as a Defence Minister that for security reasons, the Ministry of Defence does not comment on specific staffing levels or detailed security arrangements at any defence establishment.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has authorised a change to the state of readiness of HMS Prince of Wales.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
It is the Department’s policy to not disclose the readiness state of individual ships as this would, prejudice the capability, effectiveness and/or security of the Armed Forces.
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 6 March to Question 115855, whether there has been more than one version of the Defence Investment Plan.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
We are working flat out to finalise the Defence Investment Plan and it will be published as soon as possible.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, why the publication of the latest Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics has been delayed.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The publication of UK Armed Forces Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics for 1 Jan 2026 has been delayed due to technical issues affecting data quality and has a release date of 2 April 2026. This is stated in the Statistics release calendar: Quarterly Service Personnel Statistics: 1 January 2026 - Accredited official statistics announcement - GOV.UK
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 UK and European allies to develop low-cost air defence weapons to protect NATO skies, published on 20 February 2026, if he will list all possible capabilities developed under the Low-Cost Effectors & Autonomous Platforms initiative.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The LEAP initiative, as announced on 20 February, is likely to consist of a range of projects in the future, the first of these is a low-cost air defence effector. No other projects under the LEAP initiative have currently been agreed.
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 UK and European allies to develop low-cost air defence weapons to protect NATO skies, published on 20 February 2026, what percentage of the workshare for the new surface-to-air weapon will take place in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The low-cost air defence effector project under the LEAP initiative, as announced on 20 February, is now entering the international industrial selection phase. UK workshare will be dependent on the chosen solution.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what precautions are in place to avoid security breaches originating from his Department's social media channels.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence manages its official social media channels under strict Governance and security policies, supported by mandatory training, active monitoring and established incident response processes.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Cyprus Government has made representations to his Department on the sovereignty of UK military bases since 1 March 2026.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Government of the Republic of Cyprus has not made any representations to the Ministry of Defence on the sovereignty of the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia since 1 March 2026.
Asked by: James Cartlidge (Conservative - South Suffolk)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with (a) his Cypriot counterpart and (b) any Cypriot Government official on the sovereignty of UK military bases on Cyprus.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
Our relationship with the Republic of Cyprus has never been closer. During the Defence Secretary’s visit to the Republic of Cyprus (RoC) on 5 March, he met with Defence Minister Palmas and the Head of the Cypriot National Guard.
The Defence Secretary has not held discussions with Defence Minister Palmas or other Cypriot Government officials specifically on the sovereignty of the Sovereign Base Areas on the island of Cyprus. The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia are fully sovereign UK territory, established under the 1960 Treaty of Establishment.