What steps his Department is taking to support defence jobs throughout the UK.

I thank the Secretary of State for that answer. There is great interest in north Wales in the opportunity that the new medium helicopter programme could bring to the region. Will he provide an update on the progress made by his Department ahead of the launch of a formal competition?

As my constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Vale of Clwyd (Dr Davies), mentioned, the new helicopter programme could be significant in north-east Wales and generate around 400 jobs at Airbus directly, should its bid be successful. Will the Secretary of State confirm when the process is scheduled to be completed and when he expects the helicopters to come into service afterwards?

I was pleased to read last week of a new five-year, £460 million logistics contract that has been issued which should deliver the MOD £54 million of efficiency savings a year. Will the Secretary of State outline what the new logistics information system will mean for jobs in the UK, and specifically, jobs in the east midlands?

As joint chair of the all-party group on manufacturing, I know that Jack Dromey would have appreciated the emphasis today on manufacturing and UK jobs. The national shipbuilding strategy sets out an ambition to support UK manufacturing by boosting innovation, skills, jobs and productivity across the UK, in addition to ensuring the construction of ships' hulls in British shipyards using British-sourced steel. Will the Secretary of State confirm that every encouragement will be given to UK-based companies to add to the UK content of these new vessels by supplying the systems and equipment that go hand in hand with them?

Can I bring the Secretary of State back to planet Earth—or planet MOD? He has just mentioned GE at Rugby, but the MOD took no interest when its American parent company in Philadelphia wanted to move production to France; similarly, there was no interest in ensuring that the fleet solid support ships are built in the UK using British steel. Every other major industrial country and major defence country looks after their own industry. Why will he not throw off the blinkers and actually do the same here in the UK?

There are indeed 300,000 UK defence jobs linked to MOD contracts. Why have the National Audit Office and the MOD's own accounts officially confirmed 67 cases of overspends, write-offs, contract cancellations, unplanned extensions, and admin errors since 2010, costing at least £13 billion in taxpayers' money wasted since 2010? Will the Secretary of State now commission the NAO to conduct an across-the-board audit of MOD waste?

£4 billion has been wasted since 2019 alone, and the National Audit Office has judged the MOD's accounts unaffordable each year. The Secretary of State has taken no serious action to deal with these deep-seated problems. He is failing British forces and taxpayers.

The Secretary of State has offered a meeting to discuss reforming procurement in the Ministry of Defence, following the Public Accounts Committee's statement about the broken procurement system. What are his plans for reform?

There are now only three RAF bases left in Scotland, and two have been closed since the Government came to power in 2010. How many jobs have been lost due to this draw-down, and how much has the target of 12,500 personnel stationed in Scotland by 2020 been missed?

Will the Secretary of State present plans to recycle the 13 rotting nuclear submarines that are tied up at Devonport? This would be good for the environment, freeing up dock space, and beneficial for jobs.

My right hon. Friend's Department has announced that the Alanbrooke barracks in my constituency, which proudly hosts the 4th Regiment Royal Artillery, will close in 2031. Can my right hon. Friend identify any possible other military uses for that base? Alternatively, will he work urgently with the local authority to ensure that the obvious redevelopment opportunities are taken up as quickly as possible?