Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking with the Cabinet Office to codify civilian assistance to military authorities for home defence, as recommended in the Strategic Defence Review.

The Cabinet Office is leading work to develop plans for civilian assistance to the military, as a key component of the Home Defence Programme. The Cabinet Office-led programme, in which Defence plays a key role, provides layers of defence, security, and resilience planning, and coordinates civil and military preparations for some of the most serious risks we could face. Work is ongoing between the Ministry of Defence, the Cabinet Office, and other Whitehall Departments to understand the support requirements for Defence in a crisis or conflict scenario.