Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

What the cost is of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise in each year until 2029/30 as a proportion of GDP.

Spend in relation to the Defence Nuclear Enterprise will be considered as part of the Defence Investment Plan.

How many countries within NATO spent a larger proportion of GDP on defence than the UK in 2026/27.

NATO publishes defence expenditure figures for its members. As he will know figures for NATO members' defence spending for 2026-27 have not yet been published.

Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the answer of 15 April 2026 to question 125651 on Animal Experiments, which Ministers sit on the Ministerial Board overseeing delivery of the Replacing Animals in Science Strategy.

The Ministerial Board overseeing delivery of the Replacing Animals in Science Strategy is chaired by Lord Vallance. Its membership includes Baroness Hayman, Parliamentary Under‑Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Lord Hanson, Minister of State at the Home Office.

Innovation and Technology, what discussions her Department has had with HM Treasury on the UK fiscal framework for pre-clinical Contract Research Organisations.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology engages routinely with HM Treasury on a range of issues affecting the UK life sciences sector, including the fiscal framework. Officials have discussed options for supporting pre‑clinical Contract Research Organisations with HM Treasury and work continues.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, published on 11 November 2025, what progress has she made in creating a preclinical translational models hub.

The delivery of the commitment to Create a preclinical translational models hub is led by the Medical Research Council (MRC).The Preclinical translational models hub funding call to identify a host for the hub was launched on 2 March 2026 with decisions on this expected in July. The Hub is expected to commence work this year.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.

Whether she plans to review the operation of the merged R&D tax relief scheme in relation to companies providing pre-clinical research services.

The Government recognises the important role that life sciences research and development (R&D) plays in driving innovation and economic growth as well as the benefits it can bring for society. The Government committed to maintaining the generosity of the rates in both the merged R&D Expenditure Credit (RDEC) scheme and the Enhanced R&D Intensive Support (ERIS). This, combined with the commitment to cap the headline rate of Corporation Tax, means that companies doing qualifying R&D – including pre-clinical R&D – will continue to receive between £15 to £27 for every £100 spent on R&D.Under the merged R&D scheme, relief is generally available to the company that decides to undertake R&D and bears the financial risk, rather than the company contracted to carry it out, subject to limited exceptions. This approach is intended to ensure support is targeted at the company that invests in the R&D. These rules apply to pre-clinical research services in the same way as they do for all other companies.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, published on 11 November 2025, what progress has she made in increasing sustained investment focused on animal replacement.

The commitments to increase investment and expand challenge led innovation for alternative methods are being led by UKRI.The Strategy was supported by £75m of funding and commits to increasing investment in alternative methods. UKRI has been in discussion to consider the most effective delivery approach and £20 million of increased funding is already available through the Pre‑clinical Translational Models Hub funding call, launched in March 2026. In addition, Innovate UK launched a £2 million Contracts for Innovation competition in February 2026.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, Published on 11 November 2025, what progress has she made in providing foundational 3Rs training in alternative methods to all PhD students and early career scientists.

The delivery of the commitment to provide foundational 3Rs training is led by the NC3Rs. NC3Rs is developing plans in collaboration with their Board on how to expand their existing PhD student and early career researcher training so that it is accessible to all scientists who are embarking on careers using animals and alternative methods.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 April 2026 to Question 123462 on Sky Sabre, what defence capability Land Ceptor is configured for.

The Common Anti-air Modular Missiles (CAMM) in use with the British Army are deployed from Land Ceptor launchers as part of the Sky Sabre air defence missile system. This provides short-medium range air defence against a spectrum of conventional threats including cruise missiles, fixed wing, rotary wing and uncrewed aerial systems.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, published on 11 November 2025, what progress has she made in creating positive incentives for research proposal applicants to develop and implement alternatives to animal use.

The delivery of the commitment to Enable funders to ensure thorough scrutiny of animal research in funding decisions is led by UKRI and will create positive incentives for research proposal applicants to develop and implement alternatives to animal use.UKRI are developing a funding service to support this and the strategy commits to start the funding cycle in 2026.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.

What is the methodology and the formula used in the current rateable value calculation.

The Valuation Office calculates a rateable value for each business property in England and Wales. A rateable value is an estimate of what it would cost to rent a property for a year, on a set date known as the Valuation Date.The methodology and approach used to assess rateable values varies depending on the type of property. The Valuation Office publishes a Rating Manual describing how each property class is valued. The manual for the 2023 rating list can be found here, and will be updated for the 2026 list in due course.

How much his Department has been asked to make in in-year budget savings in 2026/27.

As part of routine financial management, the Ministry of Defence continues to allocate resources effectively to meet departmental and operational priorities. The total Ministry of Defence budget this financial year stands at £65.5 billion.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the policy paper Replacing animals in science: a strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods, published on 11 November 2025, by how much she plans to increase investment in alternative methods in a) 2026/27, b) 2027/28 and c) 2028/29.

The commitments to increase investment and expand challenge led innovation for alternative methods are being led by UKRI.The Strategy was supported by £75m of funding and commits to increasing investment in alternative methods. UKRI has been in discussion to consider the most effective delivery approach and £20 million of increased funding is already available through the Pre‑clinical Translational Models Hub funding call, launched in March 2026. In addition, Innovate UK launched a £2 million Contracts for Innovation competition in February 2026.

How much of the proposed in-year savings from his Department for 2025/26 were carried forward for inclusion within 2026/27 projected in-year savings.

As part of normal good financial management, the Ministry of Defence continues to allocate resources effectively to meet departmental and operational priorities. The Department's final position for 2025-26 will be set out in the Annual Report and Accounts.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, published on 11 November 2025, what progress has she made in strengthening the commitment of journal editors to publishing research using alternative methods without requiring comparison with an animal model.

The delivery of the commitment to strengthen the commitment of journal editors to publishing research using alternative methods sits with NC3Rs.As set out in the strategy, this work will be initiated at the start of 2027. To support this, NC3Rs will launch their DRIVER (Designing and Reporting In Vitro Experiments Responsibly) recommendations that underpin improved experimental design and reporting of in vitro studies in 2026.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, published on 11 November 2025, what progress she has made in developing a set of key performance indicators with which to assess delivery of the strategy.

The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.

How much was saved by his Department in-year savings in 2025/26.

As part of routine financial management, the Ministry of Defence continues to allocate resources effectively to meet departmental and operational priorities.The Department's final position for 2025-26 will be set out in the Annual Report and Accounts.

Pursuant to the answer of 13 April 2026 to Question 123069 on Type 83 Destroyers: Procurement, when the concept phase of the Future Air Dominance System (a) started and (b) is due to be completed.

I refer the hon Member to my response to question 106653.

What progress the Animals in Science Regulation Unit has made in its (a) Regulatory Reform programme and (b) new target operating model.

The Animals in Science Regulation Unit (ASRU) launched its new organisational design and operating model in late 2025. This included increasing the size of the inspectorate from an average of 14.5 full-time equivalent (FTE) posts in 2023 to 22 FTE in 2026, strengthening the Regulator’s ability to scrutinise, monitor and assure compliance of regulated establishments with the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. ASRU has also introduced specialist roles and functions to strengthen data analysis, quality monitoring and overall regulatory performance.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy ‘Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods’, later in 2026.

Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Policy paper: “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods”, published on 11 November 2025, what progress has she made in increasing the visibility of available alternative methods to facilitate their uptake.

Work to increase the visibility of available alternative methods to facilitate their uptake will be led by the NC3Rs and delivered through an expansion of their gateway publishing platform, so that it is available to all researchers developing alternative methods. Work is underway to identify and collate UKRI-funded alternative methods for inclusion on the gateway. The strategy aims for this expanded platform to be in place by the end of 2026.The Government will publish a delivery update, alongside key performance indicators on progress across all elements of the strategy, later in 2026.