Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of reductions in the Ministry of Defence Police budget on the number (a) of armed police and (b) available to deploy in the event of a national emergency.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) continues to utilise the Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) where specialist policing services and capabilities can add to the overall security effect at Defence sites and at the other locations where MDP officers are deployed. The size and deployment of the MDP are adjusted according to Ministry of Defence requirements.

MDP takes the security of Defence people, assets and sites extremely seriously. The MDP work with Defence Security and Resilience and other organisations to ensure measures utilised to provide security to MOD sites are kept under constant review and adjusted according to the threats.