Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release entitled Britain's fighter jet fleet strengthened in £205 million boost for British jobs, published on 19 January 2026, when the full-scale production of the European Common Radar System Mk2 will begin.

On 13 June 2025 the Chief Secretary to the Treasury confirmed, during a visit to Leonardo in Edinburgh, that the Ministry of Defence (MOD) had released over £200 million of funding towards the production and integration of the innovative European Common Radar System (ECRS) Mk2 radar for the RAF Typhoon. This commercial authority for Industry to start spending ahead of the full contract award was used to protect critical path activities whilst MOD and Industry negotiated the full contract.

On 22 January 2026 the Secretary of State for Defence visited Leonardo in Edinburgh to confirm the award of the full production contract between the MOD and BAE Systems, Leonardo UK and Parker Meggitt, valued at £453 million. This contract is for the manufacture and delivery of 40 ECRS Mk2 Radars. Radar deliveries will support timescales to bring ECRS Mk2 into service with the RAF by the end of this decade.