Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 18 of the Defence Command Paper 2023, what criteria his Department has developed for determining cases in which there is an essential national security requirement for certain industrial capabilities to be available onshore within the UK.

The 2023 Defence Command Paper reinforces a key message of the 2021 Defence and Security Industrial Strategy: the need for our investment decisions to take into consideration any implications for the UK’s Operational Independence.

Our considerations include identifying the industrial capabilities required to support and upgrade in-service equipment (including manufacture of the most critical components); the ability to conduct military operations as we choose; and, the ability to respond to urgent operational requirements arising during operations.