Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Defence Skills: Fife 2026-07-15

Wednesday 15 July 2026 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The UK Government has confirmed 5 million for the Arrol Gibb Innovation Campus at Rosyth to support skills development.
  • Officials are in discussions with the colleges sector and the Scottish Government regarding funding for defence technical excellence colleges.
  • The Government has committed 10 million in funding to build a skilled defence workforce.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Melanie Ward Lab
Defence Scotland
Context

The question is prompted by efforts to promote skills and manufacturing capabilities within the UK's defence sector, particularly focusing on Fife.

Question

What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to promote skills development in the defence industry in Fife?

Answer from Douglas Alexander

As part of the £50 million Scotland defence growth deal, we have confirmed £5 million for the Arrol Gibb Innovation Campus at Rosyth, helping to develop the advanced manufacturing skills needed to support the Type 31 frigate programme and future development opportunities arising from the new defence investment plan. This builds on an earlier £340 million investment in the Rosyth dockyard.

Answered
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Q2 Melanie Ward Lab
Defence Scotland
Context

This question follows from an announcement of funding for defence technical excellence colleges, with a focus on the readiness and potential of the Fife college to support entry-level skills in the defence industry.

Question

Given the threats that our country faces, in March the Secretary of State announced welcome funding for two defence technical excellence colleges, one to be in the east of Scotland. Fife college at Kirkcaldy, in particular, stands ready to absorb new funding and rapidly scale up provision to plug the gap in entry-level skills for the defence industry in Scotland. Can the Secretary of State update us on progress towards getting a Fife-based DTEC off the ground?

Answer from Douglas Alexander

Our officials are in discussions with both the colleges sector and the Scottish Government, and hope that they will match the £10 million of funding that this Government have committed so that we can get on with building those skilled defence workforce jobs in the future.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answerer did not fully address the readiness and potential for a Fife-based DTEC, focusing more on general discussions and funding commitments.

How: If Only We Had A Scottish Government Who Were Investing In Defence Skills Rather Than Dithering On Defence!

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