Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

How many civil servant positions within the Ministry of Defence were gapped as at (a) 5 July 2024 and (b) 1 February 2026.

In line with recommendations from the Strategic Defence Review the Ministry of Defence aims to reduce Civil Service costs by at least 10% by 2030. To achieve this, the Department is employing a range of workforce levers to facilitate a measured and sustainable approach to workforce reductions. As part of this process, all Civil Service vacancies are being reviewed. Until this work is complete, it is not possible to provide specific numbers of posts vacant or not being actively recruited at the dates requested.

How many civil servants have left the Ministry of Defence via the targeted voluntary exit scheme since 5 July 2024.

Since 5 July 2024, the Ministry of Defence has instigated one targeted voluntary exit scheme; this was launched on 6 Jan 2026. This scheme is Department-wide but targeted at certain professional cohorts and forms part of our response to workforce planning objectives set out in the Strategic Defence Review. This scheme is ongoing and the number of exits will not be known until later in the year. Since 5 July 2024, there have been 39 voluntary exits which can be attributed to localised workforce change activities and not via a targeted scheme such as that currently in operation.

When will he lift the civil service recruitment controls in his department.

An initial month-long recruitment pause was introduced in October 2025 across the Department as one of a range of workforce levers to facilitate a measured and sustainable approach to workforce reductions. The pause has been extended and is currently being reviewed. Throughout the pause, business areas have had the flexibility to approve exemptions where there are exceptional pressures.

With reference to page 22 of the Police reform white paper, From Local to National: A New Model for Policing (CP1489), how can local residents find out who their named, contactable officer is.

The Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee is ensuring a more consistent standard of neighbourhood policing across England and Wales. Every neighbourhood has named, and contactable officers dedicated to tackling crime and anti-social behaviour locally, with forces increasing patrols in town centres and other hotspots based on local demand and intelligence.Details of all named, contactable officers can be found on force websites, where the public are able to type in their postcode to find out about their neighbourhood policing team and area, local policing priorities and how to contact their neighbourhood teams.

With reference to page 16 of the Police reform white paper, From Local to National: A New Model for Policing (CP1489), by when will the Police Efficiency and Collaboration Programme be fully operational.

The Police Efficiency and Collaboration Programme (PECP) was announced in November 2024 as part of the Government’s manifesto commitment to set a up a programme to drive down costs in policing.The programme is operational and already making savings. Some examples of the work already underway includes signing 39 forces up to a new commercial energy strategy and piloting central purchasing within policing. These savings will be fully validated and assured after the conclusion of the financial year.

What assessment has he made of the potential merits of exceptions for (a) Military Intelligence Services and (b) Special Forces operators under the Hillsborough Law.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) keeps under continual review the implications of proposed legislation for Defence activities, including those undertaken by the most sensitive parts of Defence and the Armed Forces.Work is ongoing across the MOD to ensure that all Defence organisations can meet their legal obligations under the forthcoming Hillsborough Law, while also maintaining the necessary protections for highly sensitive operational capabilities and broader National Security.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information her Department holds on the Government Departments Lord Mandelson could access using his work pass.

As was the case under successive administrations, the Government does not comment on security matters.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information her Department holds on (a) severance and (b) compensation payments received by Lord Mandelson following the termination of his role as the UK Ambassador to the United States of America.

I refer the Hon. Member to the Government's response to the Urgent Question tabled on 12 February, the Written Ministerial Statement in the name of the Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister that same day, and Oral Statement on the 23 February which set out an update on the Government's process. We will set out further details in due course. The Government wishes to ensure that Parliament's instruction is met with the urgency and transparency that it deserves.

Which Royal Navy project is working to harness AI through machine-speed, data-centric decision making to improve the decision action cycle.

Alongside the development of the Maritime Fighting Web, several Royal Navy initiatives are underway to harness AI to improve the decision action cycle. These include establishing a Royal Navy Targeting organisation to represent the maritime component of the Integrated Force; conducting exercises and training with NATO Allies, Partners, and other Services; and working with the Defence Artificial Intelligence Cell on emerging technologies. These efforts incorporate lessons from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and address current operational risks facing the Royal Navy.

What information his Department holds on the full scope of Project Goldweed.

Project Goldweed is currently in the delivery phase. Due to operational and commercial sensitivities I am unable to provide any further detail.

What information his Department holds on the full scope of Project Lily.

The full scope of Project Lily was to include the procurement of a single, contractor supported, commercial off-the-shelf uncrewed surface vessel and a remote operations centre for year-round, global, open ocean operations. The uncrewed surface vessel was for military data gathering and was to include a two-year period of Government owned, commercially operated support before transitioning to a Government owned, Government operated solution with commercial support. This project was cancelled following a decision to consider alternative internal options to meet this requirement. Should any future procurement be required, details of the opportunity will be published in the usual way via the Defence Sourcing Portal.

What is the full scope of Project Troubler.

Project TROUBLER is currently in the concept phase. As part of this phase, performance, interoperability and complexity are some of the characteristics under consideration. Due to the current phase of the project and commercial sensitivities I am unable to provide further detail at this stage.

What information his Department holds on the full scope of Project Upham.

Project UPHAM is the name given to pre-concept work undertaken with a view to the future procurement of digital sighting systems for small arms. Given its pre-concept status, the scope and specification of this project have not been defined.

Pursuant to the Answer of 30 January 2026 to Question 107819 on Military Intelligence, what was the (a) cost and (b) start date of the existing multi‑year contract with Google for Secret‑level cloud hosting and data services.

The Ministry of Defence awarded the £400 million Secret Community Cloud (SCC) contract to Google Cloud on 8 September 2025, and work began in early October.

How many pre-existing foodbanks have been brought into official statistics each year since 2010.

The Department does not hold data on the number of pre-existing foodbanks that have been brought into official statistics. Statistics on food bank use are published annually in the Households Below Average Income statistics report and are only available from 2021/22 onwards. The most recent publication is available here: Households below average income: for financial years ending 1995 to 2024 - GOV.UK.

What information his Department holds on the scope of the Royal Navy’s Eagles Eye trials in relation to the development of a naval aviation hybrid air wing.

The Eagles Eye Trial is an iterative programme designed to develop the Royal Navy concept of hybrid air wings delivered under the Maritime Aviation Transformation programme.The Trial focuses on the development of crewed and uncrewed collaboration through the live control of Uncrewed Aerial Systems from a Wildcat Maritime Attack Helicopter.

With reference to page 13 of the Police reform white paper “From Local to National: A New Model for Policing” (CP1489), by when will she publish her new Fraud Strategy.

The Government’s Manifesto set a clear commitment to deliver a new Fraud Strategy. This commitment will be delivered in early 2026.The Strategy has been developed in close collaboration with stakeholders from industry, law enforcement and non profit organisations. It will set out how we will disrupt fraud, safeguard individuals and businesses and respond to fraud with support and justice for victims.

With reference to page 13 of the Police reform white paper “From Local to National: A New Model for Policing” (CP1489), what will be the location of the new National Centre for AI in Policing.

The Government is determined to ramp up the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence across policing. We recently announced over £115 million over the next three years to support the rapid and responsible development, testing and rollout of AI tools across all 43 police forces in England and Wales.This will be spearheaded by the creation of Police.AI, a new National Centre for AI in Policing. The Home Office is now working closely with the NPCC AI portfolio to establish Police.AI. This includes securing a host organisation and establishing and agreeing an estates strategy. Police.AI will transition into the National Police Service when it is appropriate to do so.

What his proposed timetable is for producing the first Ajax-family vehicles at Capability Drop 4 standard.

Capability drop 4 standard vehicles will only be delivered once any changes from reliability trials have been agreed. As these trials have not yet concluded, it is not appropriate to state what this timetable is. However, based on the current findings, all 589 vehicles will be delivered to Capability Drop 4 standard by September 2029 as contracted.

Pursuant to the answer of 3 February 2026, to question 108369 on Armoured Fighting Vehicles: Procurement, on what date was the project cancelled.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 108369 on 3 February 2026 which remains extant. The stop notice of December 2023 denotes the point that the project was cancelled.