Commons Sense

House of Commons · Westminster Hall

Defence Manufacturing and Procurement: Shropshire — [Mrs Maria Miller in the Chair]

16 December 2020 · 0 other contributors · 3,352 words

Opened by Mark Pritchard Con The Wrekin

Responding minister: Jeremy Quin

Defence

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

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Mark Pritchard raised concerns about defence manufacturing and procurement: shropshire — [mrs maria miller in the chair] in Westminster Hall. A government minister responded.

Key points

  • Concerns raised about job losses and economic impact due to defence manufacturing changes in Shropshire since March.
  • Emphasis on the importance of the Challenger 2 life extension programme for local suppliers and job creation.
  • Requests for government updates on the Challenger 2 programme and support for small businesses in defence supply chains.

Key requests to Government

I ask the Minister to provide updates on the progress of the Challenger 2 life extension programme and to confirm if there will be any announcements regarding this programme during today's debate. I also request that the Government supports small businesses entering defence supply chains and ensures the continuation of skilled engineering jobs in Shropshire.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Opened the debate

Mark Pritchard Con The Wrekin

I am concerned about the economic impact of defence manufacturing in Shropshire, particularly regarding job losses since March. The region is a crucial hub for defence engineering and manufacturing, with companies such as BAE Systems, Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land, GKN, Lockheed Martin, Babcock International, and Caterpillar Defence playing significant roles. I also highlight the importance of the Challenger 2 life extension programme, which would support over 60 local suppliers and create new job opportunities.

Government Response

Jeremy Quin

I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for The Wrekin (Mark Pritchard) for calling this debate. He is an assiduous constituency MP who knows about the threats and capabilities, and that so many deterrents can be produced in Shropshire. My hon. Friend referred to Boxer vehicles and ventilator challenge work in his constituency. Over the past seven months, more than 3.8 million items were handled by the defence supply chain with over 20,000 ventilators passing through Donnington. The team at Donnington has also processed 1.5 million requests and provided maintenance for military vehicles. RAF Shawbury and Cosford provide training to personnel and graduates around 2,000 aircraft engineers yearly. In 2018-19, £583 million was spent in the west midlands sustaining over 4,300 jobs. The recent award of a contract worth £860 million for more than 260 Boxer vehicles at Telford will provide work and training opportunities to over 60 apprentices over five years. We aim to target 25% of our procurement spend with SMEs by 2022, which accounted for over 19% in 2018-19 representing £3.9 billion. The four-year settlement announced provides an extra £24 billion, including at least £6.6 billion for R&D, to modernise and compete effectively on the digitised battlefield.

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