26 Apr 24. Defence Spending in Northern Ireland.
Wednesday 1 May 2024, 09.30, Committee Room 16
Watch live on Parliamentlive.tv
Representatives from Northern Ireland’s three largest employers in the defence and shipbuilding sector will be questioned by MPs on how to attract more defence spending to Northern Ireland.
MPs are likely to ask panelists from Thales, Harland & Wolff, and Spirit AeroSystems about opportunities for the Ministry of Defence to support NI firms and the challenges of securing the skills the defence and security sector needs.
Northern Ireland has one of the lowest defence procurement and services spend in the UK, at just £100 per head compared with £380 in Scotland.
Witnesses
- David McCourt, Director of Strategy, Thales;
- Ben Murray, Chief of Staff and Corporate Affairs, Harland & Wolff;
- Nick Laird, Director, European Space and Defence, Spirit AeroSystems.
23 Apr 24. Defence Committee reacts to PM’s announcement on defence spending. The Defence Committee has reacted to the Prime Minister’s announcement today that military spending would rise to 2.5% of GDP by 2030. Reacting to the announcement, Chair of the Defence Committee, Sir Jeremy Quin MP, said: “I welcome the Government’s commitment to spend more on defence. In this increasingly hostile and volatile world, we need to ensure the UK has a robust and unwavering means of deterring its adversaries. The Defence Committee has consistently advocated increased defence spending and for that spending to be strategic. It is welcome that the path to 2.5% of GDP is set out through yearly budget increases: this will increase confidence, helping to underpin industrial investment and the Defence Equipment Plan. To maximise its benefits procurement reform must be supported by cultural change across Government. This level of UK investment will help set a higher benchmark for other NATO partners as we enhance our collective security. In line with the recommendations in our ‘Ready for War?’ report, the focus on growing our munition stockpiles is to be welcomed, as is focussed investment in new technology and guaranteed long-term support to Ukraine in resisting Russian aggression.”
House of Commons and House of Lords Hansard Written Answers
Trident Submarines: Procurement
Question for Ministry of Defence
Owen Thompson
Scottish National Party
Midlothian
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of Trident renewal in the period between 2023 and 2050; and what proportion this would be of total Government spending in that period.
Answer
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
Answered on 24 April 2024
As the replacement warhead programme is in its preliminary phases, it is too early to provide cost estimates for the programme. In the absence of these estimates, it is not possible to express deterrent renewal spend as a proportion of overall Government spending.
Ministry of Defence: General Dynamics
Question for Ministry of Defence
Mr Kevan Jones
Labour
North Durham
Commons
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department paid General Dynamics UK in 2023-24 for the Ajax programme.
Answer
James Cartlidge
Conservative
South Suffolk
Commons
Answered on 24 April 2024
Between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024 the Ministry of Defence paid General Dynamics UK £437m for the AJAX programme. All payments have been made in accordance with performance against the payment schedule and milestone plan within the extant fixed price contract. I am unable to publish the details of the milestones and payment schedule as this may prejudice the Department’s commercial interests.