Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many projects funded by his Department are focused on gender equality programmes.

As the Secretary of State for Defence announced in October 2018, all roles in the military have now been opened to women. In addition, the Armed Forces (Flexible Working) Act 2018, which received Royal Assent in February 2018, enables Service personnel to apply for flexible service. Secondary legislation and preparation for project implementation is under way with the launch planned for April 2019. These changes pave the way to a greater mix of working arrangements and are expected to increase the diversity of our Armed Forces and build on our reputation as an equal opportunities employer.

Defence is dedicated to achieving a more diverse workforce and is undertaking a wide range of activities to increase the number of female recruits into the Armed Forces. The Armed Forces are working towards a target of 15% female recruitment by 2020. This challenging target reflects the importance Defence places on having Armed Forces that better reflect the society they serve. Work to increase female representation includes better understanding and greater engagement with females, reviewing recruitment processes; and better targeted marketing and communications towards potential female applicants.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has also undertaken a number of actions aimed at increasing gender equality within the Armed Forces. This includes incorporating gender issues into relevant Armed Forces doctrine and pre-deployment training. The Armed Forces undertake mandatory diversity and inclusion training on entry into service and every two years. Equality and diversity advisors are also embedded within each unit. Each service has a senior gender advocate and a servicewomen's network to improve access and opportunities for women.

For civil servants the MOD contributes to and fully supports the Civil Service schemes 'Crossing Thresholds' and 'Positive Action Pathway', both of which either fully or in part seek to promote gender equality in career development. Since 2016, 57 women from MOD have participated in Crossing Thresholds; and 178 civilians (BAME, Women, Disabled and LGBT) have taken part in Positive Action Pathway.