AUKUS Procurement SMEs 2025-01-06
2025-01-06
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Questions & Answers
Q1
Partial Answer
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Context
The AUKUS partnership is expected to create new contract opportunities for UK small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but concerns have been raised about the economic impacts of recent policy changes.
As the Secretary of State knows, under the defence equipment plan about half of MOD expenditure is on equipment, with around 40% of that going overseas. What impact does the Secretary of State think that the Government’s abolition of business property relief and the massive increase in national insurance will have on UK SMEs’ ability to compete in the defence sector with our AUKUS allies following the previous Government’s signing of that agreement?
It is certainly the case, as the right hon. Gentleman rightly recognises, that in government the Conservatives were too often largely blind to where British firms were based and to where the contracts that they were ready to award went. This Government have come into power committed not just to strengthening UK security but to boosting the UK economy. That means designing, making and buying more in Britain.
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Assessment & feedback
The impact of business property relief abolition and national insurance increase on SMEs' ability to compete in AUKUS procurement was not directly addressed.
Response accuracy