23 May 24. Findings of inquiry to address defence spending disparities for NI published. The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee has published the findings of its Defence Spending in Northern Ireland inquiry after the General Election was called. Just £190 per head is spent by the Ministry of Defence with Northern Ireland’s industry, compared with £5,930 in the South West of England. In a letter to Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, Committee Chair Sir Robert Buckland outlined key themes raised by witnesses that the Committee “felt were still important to draw” the Government’s attention to. Among them was the lack of engagement with and knowledge of Northern Ireland that, many suggested, could be fixed by establishing a regional hub of the Ministry of Defence (MoD). With 95% of Northern Ireland’s defence sector comprising small or medium enterprises, but the MoD mainly booking orders with defence giants – or primes – witnesses called out the need for “greater attention to the way primes engage with SMEs in Northern Ireland”. The introduction of a hub, they said, would improve understand of mutual opportunities for smaller companies and the MoD. Stakeholders were also in agreement that the use of the apprenticeship levy needs reform in Northern Ireland.
23 May 24. Chair Sir Jeremy Quin issues statement on the work of the Defence Committee. Chair of the Defence Committee, Sir Jeremy Quin MP, said: “The general election means that our work must come to an immediate conclusion. As a result we will not be able to go ahead with the five reports we had been planning to publish between now and the end of July, on artificial intelligence, future aviation, the grey zone, service accommodation and women in the armed forces. It has been an enormous privilege to chair the committee over the past months. We have taken a constructive, cross-party approach to all the issues we have considered. I would like to thank not only my colleagues, but everyone who has contributed to our work, especially those individuals who have recounted their personal experiences of life in the armed forces. It will be for the new Defence Committee in the next Parliament to decide if they wish to take up our work. I hope that they will consider doing so very carefully. Our inquiries are all well advanced, and I know that there is significant interest in our findings from current and former service personnel and their families.”