Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of progress made on reform to defence procurement.

We inherited a procurement system that was slow, costly and unsuited to the challenges we now face as a nation. The Government set out reforms to procurement in the Strategic Defence Review and the Defence Industrial Strategy, and these are being implemented currently. We are reforming Defence acquisition to deliver capability faster, secure better value for money and strengthen the UK defence industrial base. The Department continues to make progress, from introducing the simpler and a more flexible procurement framework under the Procurement Act 2023, embedding Procurement Segmentation in plans and portfolios, issuing tailored guidance, launching demonstrator projects and introducing seven Commercial Pathways. We continue to test and measure these reforms, support live procurements, and expand adoption across Defence.