Every parliamentary written question tabled by Ben Obese-Jecty this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 201–220 of 2,250 · Ministry of Defence
With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK and Belgium sign multi-million pound Mission Data partnership, published on 31 March 2026, what is the total value of Belgian investment over five years.
The maximum financial contribution for Belgium is €150 million. This is inclusive of VAT and other taxes, customs duties and similar charges, and accounts for inflation.
What progress he has made on developing co-operation between the UK and France under the 2025 Northwood Declaration.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 27 February 2026 to Question 113496 to the hon. Member for The Wrekin (Mr Pritchard).
When was the last meeting of the Advisory Military Sub-Committee.
The Advisory Military Sub-Committee last met on 21 November 2025.
By what date will he establish the joint road map with France to develop the successor to the Meteor missile.
The United Kingdom and France have agreed to undertake a joint study for the development of next‑generation air‑to‑air weapon concepts. The content and precise timing for any future roadmap to replace Meteor will be informed by the outcomes of this analysis.
If he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the adoption of the EREBUS system on the speed of defensive aid suite integration.
EREBUS is a UK‑developed flight test capability enabling realistic testing of Defensive Aid Systems before installation on frontline aircraft. Developed by Dstl with UK Industry, it reduces integration risk and cost, supports rapid upgrades, strengthens international collaboration, and helps maintain world‑leading air‑protection capabilities. EREBUS has the potential to significantly accelerate the adoption of Defensive Aid Suites by de‑risking system integration and performance at every stage of the development cycle.
What progress has he made in updating the UK F-35B fleet with Block 4 modifications.
We do not routinely comment on detailed delivery schedules. However, the Block 4 upgrade programme continues, it did not impact the declaration of Lightning Full Operating Capability. The Block 4 upgrade programme will further develop our world leading Combat Air capability, the UK Lightning, through improvements in lethality, survivability and supportability.
With reference to his Department's Pre-Procurement Notice entitled Strategic Defence Review - Energetics Investment Information Notice, published on 2 April 2026, when will the feasibility studies (a) commence and (b) conclude.
We plan to confirm value for money and affordability criteria by no later than the beginning of quarter 3 2026. Feasibility studies are planned to be contracted in April 2026, and to conclude in August 2026.
Pursuant to the Answer of 9 June 2025 to Question 56964 on F-35 Aircraft: Procurement, on what dates did the Royal Air Force receive the remaining F-35B Lightning II aircraft.
On 13 March 2026, the UK accepted its 48th F-35B aircraft.
With reference to page 24 of the Defence Diplomacy Strategy - Public Summary, by when he plans to (a) commence and (b) conclude the underpinning review.
Due to the size and complexity of Defence’s intelligence partnerships, this work is already underway and is being carried out in stages rather than as a one‑off, time‑limited review. The aim is to ensure that intelligence sharing supports Defence’s international priorities, underpins a NATO First approach, and strengthens the UK’s influence with allies and partners. As outlined in the Defence Diplomacy Strategy, this work will provide recommendations by the end of 2026.
With reference to his press conference of 9 April 2026, what is the £100m allocated to the Poseidon P-8 fleet for.
This allocation refers to a two-year contract extension awarded to Boeing Defence UK to provide training and support services to the RAF’s Poseidon P-8 fleet. This will run to March 2028 and covers aircraft support, maintenance, supply chain management, and training for the Poseidon fleet based at RAF Lossiemouth in Moray.
What assessment has he made of the potential impact of the adoption of the (a) 6.02mm x 41mm round and (b) AK22 rifle in Russian military service on British Army body armour.
The Ministry of Defence routinely assesses emerging and evolving small‑arms threats as part of its ongoing responsibility to protect Service personnel. The specific threats against which UK body armour is designed to provide protection are held at a higher security classification and therefore it would be inappropriate for me to provide specific details. However, I can confirm that UK body armour requirements are kept under constant review to ensure they continue to reflect the most dangerous and prevalent threats our personnel are likely to face while conducting their duties.
What progress the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory has made in developing AI triage decision-making in battlefield military medicine in conjunction with the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.
As reported in the press, experts from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) are collaborating with the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) using hardware and methodologies developed under DARPA's In the Moment (ITM) fundamental research programme. AI systems do not naturally align with humans and the ITM programme aims to develop technologies to enable such alignment. Battlefield medical triage is a research use case within this wider programme. In October 2025 Scientists from Dstl and their US counterparts at DARPA ran pioneering UK trials to understand whether medical staff would trust and delegate triage decisions to AI systems aligned with their own priorities.The trials showed that having an aligned AI increased the likelihood of delegation, potentially allowing triage to be carried out more quickly and ultimately helping medical staff treat more casualties with the integration of trusted AI. Further trials will take place later this year.
What progress he has made in meeting the NATO Industrial Capacity Expansion Pledge.
The NATO Industrial Capacity Expansion Pledge, agreed by Allies at the Washington Summit in July 2024, commits NATO to strengthening defence industrial capacity and resilience across the Alliance. The UK is actively supporting delivery of the Pledge through close engagement with NATO and Allies, including through NATO’s Defence Production Action Plan (DPAP), which provides the practical framework for implementing the commitments. This includes work to aggregate demand, strengthen defence‑critical supply chains, support multinational procurement, and improve NATO–industry engagement. The UK’s Defence Industrial Strategy aligns UK industrial activity with NATO priorities and supports delivery of the Pledge by increasing production capacity, improving resilience, and encouraging long‑term investment in the defence industrial base.
With reference to his Department's announcement entitled UK and France sign agreement to develop next-generation air-to-air missile, published on 1 April 2026, by what date when will he establish the new joint Complex Weapons Portfolio Office.
As set out in the Department's announcement of 1 April 2026, the United Kingdom and France have agreed to establish a joint Complex Weapons Portfolio Office. Work is now actively underway with the French Government to establish the office and agree a commissioning date at the earliest opportunity.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the adoption of the (a) 6.8mm x 50mm round and (b) QBZ-191 rifle by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army on British Army body armour.
The Ministry of Defence routinely assesses emerging and evolving small‑arms threats as part of its ongoing responsibility to protect Service personnel. The specific threats against which UK body armour is designed to provide protection are held at a higher security classification and therefore it would be inappropriate for me to provide specific details. However, I can confirm that UK body armour requirements are kept under constant review to ensure they continue to reflect the most dangerous and prevalent threats our personnel are likely to face while conducting their duties.
What is the full scope of the the Hypersonic Technologies and Capability Development Framework.
The Hypersonic Technologies and Capability Development Framework (HTCDF) is a bespoke £1b billion Commercial Agile Route to Market to facilitate a spiralled approach to technology development through to a sovereign capability.The framework covers a broad range of scope required to develop a Hypersonic Strike Capability, crucially allowing contracting at all levels of Technology Readiness. Lots include: Design and Integration, Modelling, Simulation and Test and Evaluation, Airframe and Power Generation, Low TRL / Specialists, Lethal Package, Propulsion, Onboard Computing and Seekers with significant supplier capability represented in each Lot.
When the Armed Forces Pay Review for 2026-27 will be announced.
The Government has received the independent Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body Pay Round 26 report and is carefully considering its recommendations before publishing both the report and our response to it in due course.
With reference to his Department's press release entitled UK and Belgium sign multi-million pound Mission Data partnership, published on 31 March 2026, by what date does he plan to establish a sovereign Joint Electromagnetic Warfare Support Centre in Belgium.
Further to the Department’s press release entitled “UK and Belgium sign multi‑million pound Mission Data partnership”, published on 31 March 2026, the Programme is expected to deliver a fully functional and sustainably supported Belgian Joint Electromagnetic Warfare Support Centre by the end of 2028.
What steps did he take to help ensure the mapping of the location of Olenya Guba released by his Department on 9 April 2026 accurately disclosed the location of the submarine base of the Main Directorate of Deep-Sea Research.
The map originally published on 9 April did not accurately reflect the location of Oleyna Guba. The difference in location arose during the reformatting of the map for publication and did not affect the versions used internally by the Department.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Russian use of the Chinese Shennong Shield-3000 mobile high-energy laser directed energy weapon on Taskforce Kindred’s efforts to support Ukrainian armed forces via drone capability.
The Ministry of Defence continues to work closely with the Government of Ukraine on the sharing of knowledge and insights to ensure that our support meets Ukraine's priority requirements and that the Armed Forces of Ukraine is responding effectively to the evolving threat, including from drones and energy weapons.Due to operational security, we do not comment on specific capabilities.