Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will award medals to the crew of the HMS Diamond for their work during the period of November 2023 and July 2024.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Medallic recognition for the operational activity undertaken by HMS Diamond during the period November 2023 and July 2024, is under consideration by the Ministry of Defence in accordance with the existing process.
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 to the public purse of dismantling the pressurised water reactors from redundant submarines at (a) Devonport Dockyard and (b) Rosyth Dockyard; and what ongoing collaboration exists between the Defence Nuclear Enterprise and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in relation to this work.
Answered by Maria Eagle
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 65493 from the hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell (Helen Maguire) on 14 July 2025.
https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2025-07-07/65493#
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Establishment Management Plan at HMNB Clyde includes actions to monitor and manage any potential discharges of radioactive material into surrounding environments.
Answered by Maria Eagle
The Establishment Management Plan (EMP) at His Majesty’s Naval Base (HMNB) Clyde does not include actions to monitor and manage any potential discharges of radioactive material into surrounding environments. Its focus is on maintaining safe, secure, and high-quality estate, buildings, and infrastructure. Whilst the EMP is not a nuclear safety document it will be informed by, and take into consideration, regulatory requirements.
While the treatment of radioactive material is outside of the scope of the EMP, I can confirm handling radioactive substances safely and securely at HMNB Clyde are of the utmost importance. HMNB Clyde engages frequently with regulators to ensure it is discharging its responsibilities in compliance with regulations concerning the treatment of radioactive materials. There are extant Defence and independent monitoring programmes in place also.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much plutonium has been recovered as part of the Mk4A Trident warhead dismantlement programme; what proportion has been re-used in current warhead systems; where remaining material is stored; and what the total cost of the programme has been to date.
Answered by Maria Eagle
The Mk4 warhead components are being disassembled and re-used, recycled or safely disposed of at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) Burghfield site, following the transition to the Mk4A warhead in 2023. The cost of disassembling our nuclear warheads and details around the reuse of components are being withheld for national security reasons.
AWE is committed to the safe and secure handling, storage and disposal of radioactive materials, and this activity is regulated by the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the annual cost is of the warhead dismantlement programme across Atomic Weapons Establishment sites; and what protocols are in place for the secure (a) handling, (b) storage and (c) disposal of radioactive materials.
Answered by Maria Eagle
The Mk4 warhead components are being disassembled and re-used, recycled or safely disposed of at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) Burghfield site, following the transition to the Mk4A warhead in 2023. The cost of disassembling our nuclear warheads and details around the reuse of components are being withheld for national security reasons.
AWE is committed to the safe and secure handling, storage and disposal of radioactive materials, and this activity is regulated by the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency.
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
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.
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
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 contracts their Department has with Palantir.
Answered by Maria Eagle
Details of central Government contracts above £12,000 for procurements commenced before 24 February 2025 are published on Contracts Finder.
Contracts procured under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into force on 24 February 2025, are published on the Central Digital Platform Find a Tender service.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Department uses non‑deterministic systems.
Answered by Maria Eagle
The Ministry of Defence is exploiting AI across a broad spectrum of use cases from the frontline to the back office to make all parts of Defence more efficient and effective. This includes the use of 'non-deterministic' AI systems, such as Large Language Models, where they demonstrate operational benefit. Joint Service Publication 936 on Dependable AI provides a robust framework to address AI-related risks around human control and unpredictability as part of our existing risk management process. This ensures that our legal, ethical and safety obligations are always fulfilled for all AI use cases.
Asked by: Martin Wrigley (Liberal Democrat - Newton Abbot)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that AI-generated intelligence products are (a) reproducible, (b) trusted and (c) secure.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) continues to exploit AI tools to support intelligence analysts in producing robust and comprehensive assessments. Assessments that incorporate AI analysis are held to the same rigorous standards, such as the Professional Head of Intelligence Assessment Common Analysis Standards, which ensure the highest levels of objectivity, rigour, and auditability. In parallel, we are offering all staff AI training to ensure the MOD is best placed to interpret, manage and keep appropriately secure the large volumes of complex and often conflicting data. This will enable senior decision-makers to spend more time acting on accurate, timely intelligence assessment.