17 Mar 23. Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace to give evidence on cultural defence diplomacy. On Wednesday 22 March, at 14.30, the Defence Sub-Committee on Cultural Defence Diplomacy will hold an evidence session, hearing from the Secretary of State for Defence, Ben Wallace. How do the Armed Forces and Ministry of Defence (MOD) contribute to the UK’s global standing and soft power? This evidence session will explore the use of cultural defence diplomacy to improve the UK’s relations with both allies and other countries. The session will likely cover the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, as well as defence attachés and the department’s long-term vision for the network.
This Sub-Committee is chaired by Defence Committee member Gavin Robinson MP.
Wednesday 22 March, 14.30:
- Rt Hon. Ben Wallace MP – Secretary of State for Defence
17 Mar 23. MPs to hear MOD evidence on climate ambitions and Indo-Pacific strategy . On Tuesday 21 March MPs from the Defence Committee will hear evidence from minister Baroness Goldie, and two different panels of government officials and military leaders.
In panel one, at 10.30am, MPs will question witnesses on the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) contribution to emissions goals, and whether the department is giving sufficient priority to combatting climate change.
In panel two, at 11.30am, witnesses will give evidence on the UK’s strategy in the Indo-Pacific region. MPs will ask how the government intends to work with its allies in the region, especially following the recent announcement of a shared submarine platform through the AUKUS agreement.
Panel one, 10.30 – Defence and Climate Change
- Baroness Goldie – Minister of State, MOD
- James Clare – Director Levelling Up, The Union, Climate Change and Sustainability, MOD
- Gen. (Retd) Richard Wardlaw – Chief of Defence Logistics and Support, MOD
- Gen. (Retd) Robert Walton-Knight – Director Strategy and Plans, Defence Infrastructure Organisation, MOD
Panel two, 11.30 – UK Defence and the Info-Pacific:
- Baroness Goldie – Minister of State, MOD
- Nick Gurr – Director, International Security, MOD
- Adrian Reilly – Head of International Security, MOD
- Shimon Fhima, Director of Strategic Programmes
17 Mar 23. Has UK air power capability suffered from defence cuts? MPs to ask military leaders. On Wednesday 22 March, at 10.30, the Defence Committee will question retired military leaders on the UK’s contribution to NATO air power.
MPs will quiz witnesses on how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has highlighted gaps in the UK’s air power capability, and whether the reputation of the RAF within NATO has suffered from cuts to defence spending. They will also ask whether the UK and its allies should agree to Ukraine’s requests for combat aircraft, and if so, how this should be executed. The Committee will examine the impact of the early retirement of the C-130J Hercules among other cuts to aviation capabilities.
Panel one, 10.30:
- Andy Netherwood – Squadron Leader (ret’d)
Panel two, 11.00:
- Dan Stembridge – Captain Royal Navy (ret’d) and Chair, Air & Space Power Group, Royal Aeronautical Society
- David Deptula – Lieutenant General USAF (ret’d) and Dean, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.
House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard Written Answers
Defence Infrastructure Organisation
Question for Ministry of Defence
John Healey
Labour
Wentworth and Dearne
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will provide for each distinct job role, the job description and number of staff in that role, and salary band information at the Defence Infrastructure Organisation as of 1 March 2023.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 16 March 2023
As at 28 February 2023, there were 6,142 staff employed by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation in 439 job roles, this includes Military, Agency Staff and Consultants.
Detailed job roles and job descriptions could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Information regarding salary bands can be found on the Gov.uk website via the following link: MOD-Organogram of Staff Roles & Salaries-DIO – data.gov.uk
Unmanned Air Vehicles: Costs
Question for Ministry of Defence
John Healey
Labour
Wentworth and Dearne
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the projected whole-life cost to the public purse for the Protector drone programme is as of 13 March 2023; and what the projected whole-life cost was when the programme was announced.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 16 March 2023
The 2016 Main Gate Business Case approved a Whole Life Cost of £1,248.039 million, at 50% Confidence. The current Whole Life Cost projection is £1,764.021 million. The difference includes £325 million in acquisition costs and around £190 million in through life costs.
Defence: Procurement
Question for Ministry of Defence
Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
Labour
Slough
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the defence procurement system.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 16 March 2023
The Ministry of Defence is committed to driving effective delivery of capability to the front line and this is reflected in overall performance. For example, from the main investment decision point, the majority of Defence Equipment & Support programmes deliver on or ahead of their original cost estimates, and about half deliver on or ahead of original time estimates.
The Department continues to work to increase pace and improve delivery. We are focusing on our people and learning from experience to set new programmes up for success and embed improvement into the future. Our pan-Defence acquisition reform agenda which was established in early 2022 covers five themes:
- Improving cost estimating and cost control
- Improving relationships with industry
- Delivering strategic intent and Defence priorities through our requirements
- Empowering and enabling programme leadership
- Streamlining acquisition and approvals processes and addressing project resourcing challenges
Hercules Aircraft
Question for Ministry of Defence
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Conservative
Bournemouth East
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has for the C130J fleet after its replacement by A400M.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 16 March 2023
The Royal Air Force’s C-130J Hercules capability is planned to be withdrawn from service on 30 June 2023. Appropriate disposal activities have already begun in support of the potential sale of the airframes, flight simulators, support equipment, and the remaining specialised C130J spares inventory.
AUKUS
Question for Ministry of Defence
John Healey
Labour
Wentworth and Dearne
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the £3 billion of funding to support the AUKUS pact announced by the Prime Minister on 13 March 2023 will be drawn from (a) the Dreadnought contingency fund or (b) HM Treasury reserves.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 16 March 2023
The £3 billion announced by the Prime Minister represents new additional funding to support investment across the defence nuclear enterprise and will form part of the Defence core budget.
Army: Employment
Question for Ministry of Defence
John Healey
Labour
Wentworth and Dearne
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it remains his policy to reduce the size of the full time British Army to 73,000 soldiers.
Answer
James Heappey
Conservative
Wells
Commons
Answered on 15 March 2023
The Ministry of Defence is reviewing whether it is now right to reduce the Regular Army to 73,000, as planned under Future Soldier. That process is ongoing. Any specific policy changes or updates required related to defence capability and force design will be determined once the update to the Defence Command Paper has concluded.
Challenger Tanks
Question for Ministry of Defence
John Healey
Labour
Wentworth and Dearne
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral evidence given by the Minister for the Armed Forces to the Defence Select Committee on the 8 March 2023 that the 157 of the British Army’s 227 Challenger 2 tanks are available, how many Challenger 2 tanks have been available in each year since 2015.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 14 March 2023
Since 2010, the British Army has held an active fleet of 227 Challenger 2 Main Battle Tanks. The number of Challenger 2 available for deployment fluctuates depending on operational and training commitments and routine maintenance of the fleet.
Guided Weapons: Procurement
Question for Ministry of Defence
John Healey
Labour
Wentworth and Dearne
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral evidence given by the Minister for the Armed Forces to the Defence Select Committee on 8 March 2023 that a contract for new Starstreak missiles has been placed, on what date that contract was signed.
Answer
Alex Chalk
Conservative
Cheltenham
Commons
Answered on 14 March 2023
In order to replenish the Starstreak High Velocity Missiles (HVM) Granted in Kind to Ukraine, the Ministry of Defence placed a contract with Thales on 30 Sept 2022 to supply a number of HVM from the remaining stock held by the company. These missiles are due for delivery in 2023. The number of missiles being supplied is operationally sensitive.
A further contract was placed with Thales on 21 December 2022 A further contract was placed with Thales on 21 December 2022 to commence work on development of a new version of the HVM.