UK-Türkiye Typhoon Export Deal

Josh Fenton-Glynn Excerpts

Wednesday 29th October 2025 Commons Chamber

[Luke Pollard]

I am heaping praise on the workforce in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency and across Lancashire. It makes it so much easier to sell our products when we have a world-class workforce producing world-class products. I am sorry that he was not able to join me on my visit, but I know that he is a regular visitor to those facilities, so he will have heard about the importance of this order and why it has been such a priority for the Government to get it over the line.

The hon. Gentleman will know that all our spending commitments will be made in the defence investment plan that will be published towards the end of this year, something that I spoke to the workforce and the trade unions about when I met them on my recent visit. There are enormous opportunities in the export market to help to support the supply chains in the meantime, and they are not just about the end product—although his constituency really values that. This is a good news day for the 330 companies across our country for which there will be more orders to sustain good, well-paid jobs.

[Josh Fenton-Glynn (Calder Valley) (Lab)]

I welcome this deal, which is the biggest of its kind in a generation. As the world is becoming more unstable, this ambition should turn world-class defence deals into growth that we can feel in workshops, factories and communities across the country. In Calder Valley—or valve valley, as it is known because of its specialist valve manufacturers—businesses tell me that they want to play a bigger role in that success, but small and medium-sized firms feel locked out of defence procurement and supply chains. Worse, the big companies that dominate the field sometimes poach skilled staff from companies that cannot access the process. Can the Minister make sure that the procurement system is more open and competitive so that more communities such as Calder Valley can benefit from that investment?

[Luke Pollard]

I thank my hon. Friend, who I will have to refer to as the Member for valve valley from now on. He raises an important issue about the ability of small and medium-sized enterprises to access defence. Over the last decade, the amount of direct MOD spend with SMEs has fallen from 5% to 4%. We have set an ambition to spend an additional £2.5 billion directly with small businesses by 2028. As part of that, we will be opening our office for small business growth at the start of the new year—a one-stop shop for small businesses to access MOD contracts and navigate the procurement system. At the same time, we are seeking to cut the contracting time, which favours large companies with bigger contract teams over small enterprises, to give more small businesses a shot at some of the increasing defence spending that the Government are making available.