Tag: Ministry of Defence

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 19 June 2025.

Thousands of high-skilled jobs and hundreds of apprenticeships have been created to help keep the United Kingdom protected around the clock, with newly published figures highlighting the economic benefits of the defence nuclear industry.

• New figures reveal that 1,500 skilled roles have been created in the last year at the UK’s nuclear weapons technology centre AWE.
• Government study shows that people working in defence nuclear industry receive 20% above average UK salary.
• Defence Secretary visits top secret site as £15 billion investment in sovereign UK nuclear warhead supports the Plan for Change with nearly 10,000 jobs across the UK.

It comes as the government’s delivers a landmark £15 billion investment in this parliament into the renewal of the UK’s sovereign nuclear warhead – confirmed through the recent Strategic Defence Review – to keep the British people safe while supporting almost 10,000 UK jobs.

The figures from government analysis published today also show that average salaries in the defence nuclear industry reach £45,500 – 20% higher than the UK average.

Over the last year, 1,500 new skilled staff, and double the number of apprentices and graduates, have joined AWE in Aldermaston, Berkshire – the UK’s nuclear weapons technology centre – all vital to the success of the nuclear deterrent by playing a critical role in the development and maintenance of the nuclear warhead stockpile.

It comes as John Healey was the first Defence Secretary to visit AWE since 2018, and he hailed the economic growth impact for the local area, as AWE celebrates its 75th anniversary.

The AWE workforce of 9,500 staff, including 3,000 engineers and 1,500 scientists, demonstrates the defence nuclear sector as an engine for economic growth, backing the government’s Plan for Change. This milestone year reflects AWE’s crucial contribution to the UK’s independent nuclear deterrent – keeping a nuclear-armed submarine at sea continuously – ensuring the security of the nation and our NATO allies around the clock.

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said:

The nuclear weapons technology delivered at AWE keeps us all safe every minute of the day. The skilled men and women working here play a fundamental role in deterring global conflict and that cannot be underestimated.

However, our nuclear deterrent doesn’t just protect us, it also powers prosperity. From the design and development of the warhead in Aldermaston, to shipbuilding in Barrow and maintenance in Plymouth, to deployment for operations from Clyde, defence is an engine for growth. The Defence Nuclear Enterprise delivers on the Plan for Change by backing thousands of jobs across the country.

Through the Strategic Defence Review we are unshakeable in our commitment to maintaining our nuclear deterrent – it is the ultimate guarantor of our national security and the security of our NATO allies.

AWE is part of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise (DNE) – the partnership of organisations that operate, maintain, renew and sustain the UK’s nuclear deterrent as part of a national endeavour which supports more than 48,000 jobs across the country – set to rise to 65,000 in the next decade.

Through the Nuclear Skills Plan, nearly 4,000 early career starters are projected to have entered the wider nuclear sector over the last year, with the total number of graduate and apprenticeship roles in the sector aiming to double over the next 10 years.

During his visit, the Defence Secretary met with staff, scientists and apprentices to acknowledge the establishment’s legacy, celebrate current achievements, and highlight the importance of investing in future talent. AWE welcomed nearly 500 graduates, apprentices and placement students in 2024/25 – double the previous year – many of them from local communities.

The defence nuclear industry wage premium also brings prosperity to some of the most economically disadvantaged communities in the UK, with over half of those employed in the defence nuclear industry living in areas targeted for economic regeneration.

The visit comes after the SDR and Spending Review provided the commitment and funding for the UK to produce a new submarine every 18 months in future years. It follows the commitment to grow the UK’s attack submarine fleet to up to 12 under the AUKUS partnership.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 17 June 2025.

The Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Roly Walker’s speech at the RUSI Land Warfare Conference.

Good afternoon.

We are 54 nations, and 17 Army Chiefs taking part in this conference: that’s the power of shared missions and interests. Welcome, and thanks for coming.

I concluded this event last year by reflecting on the grim strategic situation.

Amongst other things:

Russia had seemingly abandoned the principle of mutual co-existence with us here in Europe, and so we needed to prepare accordingly.

I also said that we needed to see a fundamental shift in how we fight on and from the land.

And that this transformation, importantly, would need to be matched by an equally transformative relationship with our defence industrial base.

I offered a vision of how 5th Gen land forces could set the joint force up for the unfair fight.

And I shared an ambition to double then triple the fighting power of our land forces, by 2027 and 2030 respectively.

A year on, I think those reflections have been validated, not least by the Government’s SDR.

Today I want to open the event with three reports: what the SDR means to us; a ‘we said – we’ve done’ look at the last 12 months; and a ‘what next – what more’ for the year ahead.

To the SDR, whose analysis and recommendations I fully support.

For me it’s a story of reversal and change, as well as massive collective opportunity.

So, the reversal is really of a trajectory in defence policy that characterised the second era of NATO, that ‘peace dividend’ period that followed the Cold War. That trajectory is now shifting, definitively, as a matter of policy.

And being in the third era of NATO, we are now in the business of focusing our preparedness and resolve to fight war at scale and over time.

For me, as Army Chief, that means generating the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps as one of NATO’s two strategic reserve forces, in both mission and taskorg. That is why last year I put the British Army’s specialist enabling brigades under Com ARRC’s command last year, and why he now has tactical command of both the 1st and 3rd UK divisions. The Corps-level of fighting is also the focus for accelerated modernisation, alongside hardening the edge at every echelon within.

Secondly, rebuilding a national arsenal, an ‘always on’ system of production that innovates in peacetime and scales in wartime. More of that in a minute.

And thirdly it means strengthening our ties with society – it takes a country to fight and win a war – which we will do through the Standing Joint Command headquartered in Aldershot, the traditional home of the British Army, to enhance resilience, prepare to regenerate force, and help defend the homeland. It takes a country to fight a war, after all.

The change comes in the way we fight, as signalled in the SDR, as an increasingly integrated force.

The case for integrating greater autonomy and more robotics into our fighting system is well understood, but to unlock the extraordinary power they offer, we have to digitise our system deeper and wider than we’re doing at the moment, which is why I could not be more pleased to see in the SDR the commitment of at least £1Bn for a Digital Targeting Web. We will soon get the data, the all-important commodity, moving horizontally not just vertically, at light speed, with a precision focus on the defeat mechanisms to an adversary’s fighting system, from top to bottom, from back to front, from the fundamentals of how they build that fighting system, to the frontlines where they might use it. To me, it’s an approach of corrosion and erosion from within, not just explosion from without.

And finally, to the big opportunity, let me explain my vision for how fighting power and market power come together, with a model we call Growth Through Transformation, it’s a pitch not a plan, to make this real, from the foxhole to the factory floor.

For the sake of argument let’s say the square on the screen represents a pair of attack helicopters, or a pair of tanks, or a pair of self-propelled howitzers. Today nearly 100% the British Army’s lethality – our ability to project destructive force over an adversary, while protecting ourselves from attack, and doing this sustainably so n+1 works for us (ie they run out before we do)– comes from these highly sophisticated crewed platforms, and nearly 100% of our equipment budget goes on sustaining those platforms we have and acquiring new ones.

In themselves, they sustain a decent and traditional defence industrial sector, and given where we are with CR3, Boxer and AJAX, is building resilience as well as growing it. It could be more, given the total addressable market for modernising AFVs around the world is judged to be $43Bn over 10years. That’s opportunity we need to position ourselves for.

But…if those are the only platforms we fight from the land with, no matter the wizardry of our digital targeting web, I reckon we lose. Or at the very least, it won’t be an unfair fight we’re after.

That’s because T hey take months to produce and years to train competent crews for. They’re also increasingly on the wrong side of the cost curve when it comes to price per kill. A £20M tank and four experienced crew members lost to a £1k drone operated by kid with only a few days training – who probably isn’t even on the same map sheet as the tank.

Let me be abundantly clear though, we are going to need survivable and lethal platforms for as long as land forces need to seize and hold terrain, which means boots on the ground to close with and kill the enemy, if it comes to it. We wouldn’t put troops there without a rifle, radio, body armour and helmet, so why would we put their vehicles there without guns, armour plating and comms?

What we do need is to layer around them a series of attritable platforms, from which more sensors sense at greater distances, and more munitions are launched. They fly, float and drive, and are the new source of combat mass. You don’t want to lose them, but it’s not a tragedy if you do because, although sophisticated, they’re uncrewed.

And around them is a third layer of consumable systems. These are your even cheaper single-use platforms, like one-way effectors. When they’re gone, they’re gone.

And that’s how we are multiplying our fighting power, with a three-ring source of lethality.

The challenge for the team her is that in the future I want 20% of our lethality to come from the survivable layer, 40% from the attritable, and 40% from consumable. That does not mean I want 1/5th the number of crewed platforms in the PoR, it’s that I want each one to be five times more lethal, survivable and sustainable. Because that’s how we’ll meet NATO’s land capability targets, as well as service our part in the regional plans.

And I want to spend 50% of our money on the 20% of crewed and expensive, and 50% on the remaining 80% of attritable. Why the maths?

An example. We could double the fighting power of that AH mission from 16 stowed kills from 16km standoff to 32 kills from the same distance, by buying two more attack helicopters and making it a four-ship mission. Or, for the same amount of money the two new AH cost us, we could layer attritable mule drones and consumable OWE to make that over 200 kills from over 50kms standoff. That starts to look a lot more lethal than 2x or 3x, is more survivable, and on the right side of the cost curve.

I want to test this hypothesis with a prototype on Ex STDE27, and I’m really excited that we’re close to going to market to make this happen, and to make a market in Land ACP.

Because here’s the strategic bit…to do this, we need to grow a completely new sector in our Defence Industrial Ecosystem. Bringing that hi/lo mix of crewed and uncrewed systems into being will, we think, as a minimum, create thousands of new highly specialised jobs in software, AI and advanced robotics.

A lot of this is dual-use: military and civilian. Which attracts private investment because it scales. So this is not just about the 2.6% of GDP the Government has announced for UK Defence, but about making Defence a great place for venture capital and private equity to invest in.

It allows us to access a total addressable market in drones of around £70Bn/10 for drones and £28Bn/10 for OWEs. That is pretty eye watering compared to the traditional system.

And this is as much a system of production and stockpiles as it is developing skills and talent in society.

This is how the necessary transformation in how we fight…becomes a virtue: an energised national arsenal stimulating economic growth, and direct benefit into society writ large.

So, to the double!

I described our soldiers as our competitive advantage: our point of difference. They are ingeniously creative and astonishingly resilient.

They are enabling Techcraft at every level – the fusion of fieldcraft and technology – every day. “Give us the tools and we will finish the job” was Churchill’s shout, and it still applies today our soldiers today.

Project Asgard is delivering. Not just our pathfinder to show we can find, fund, and fight transformative capabilities differently, better, cheaper, and faster. It’s a project that is flipping our Forward Land Forces in Estonia from a strategic tripwire into an invasion stopping capability. When Russian soldiers eventually return to barracks across the River Narva, they’re going to find the same lethal recce-strike systems there, which gave them such a mauling in the Donbas.

Last July we talked about it…in August we decided to do it…the Defence Secretary announced it in October…January saw partners on contract working alongside us…in May we exercised it in Estonia…and next month our first public expo here in the UK.

It’s a project that, through AI-fuelled, software defined, and network enabled capabilities we are confident has made 4 Light Brigade capable of acting 10 times faster and 10 times further than it could last year.

It’s a project that fields the first NATO FLF equipped with one way effectors, capable of striking targets over 250km away, or from 250km stand-off.

It’s a project that’s involved 20 industry partners, has already created 200 skilled jobs, and sees Allies looking to those same partners to build their own systems.

It’s effects were integrated into the Estonian Ex GRIFFIN LIGHTNING, enabling the ESTDIV to find and strike deeper than ever, with much greater precision and at a higher kill rate, though I admit in a simulated exercise.

So we’ve proved it, to a point with an MVP, now we start scaling to the Corps level, and we’ll continue to share our knowledge with our allies.

But it’s not just about Asgard.

A better trained force will often defeat a bigger and better equipped one. A lesson Goliath learned from David. Our new Land Training System is preparing us to do just that.

In the last 3 months alone, 72 fighting sub-units have gone through a new intensive 10 week ‘combat training at echelon’ programme. Over the next 12 months, 400 sub-units or around 90% of the Army will complete that training, an 80% increase compared to 2020.

We’ve trained over 3,000 drone pilots, with another 6,000 over the next year, as well as providing 200 simulators into unit lines.

That system has improved battlegroup performance against KPIs by 30% this year, reducing sensor to shooter time by 33% already.

That system has validated both of our divisions and seven brigades for their NATO combat tasks this year – which is an unprecedented state of readiness as judged by our peers.

And we’re making good strides with equipment too, although there is always room for improvement.

We’ve fielded 121 AJAX vehicles this year, expanding to 356 next year.

We’ve begun to field Boxer this year, with 113 next.

We’ve launched a joint c-UAS project with the US called Project VANAHEIM, involving 20 industry partners, on mission in Germany now developing the system.

We’ve begun recapitalising our MLRS, with first variants in service next year, doubling our range from 80 to 160km.

We’ve fielded 28,000 new SA80 assault rifles and 3,000 world-leading night vision goggles this year.

With edge processing we’ve integrated AI into existing equipment such as our Bowman radios, reducing packet size and prioritising the flow of data for targeting purposes, and that has seen faster decision cycles, increasing by an order of magnitude our lethality.

Our Corps HQ, on Project Convergence, with its industry partners embedded, combined three different software applications on a secret comms bearer creating a digital kill chain that made the Corps four times quicker at engaging individual targets, down from 16 mins to 4 mins for a fire mission.

The effect over multiple missions was even greater. The software-centric solutions reduced the Corps HQ’s cognitive load between missions enabling them to kill 10 times as many targets in a day.

That is why I welcome the SDR’s ambition to 10X our fighting power by 2035 – because with the right people, software, training, and technology it’s possible to do it.

So, I believe we’re on track…for now…to doubling our fighting power by 2027. The results are encouraging though I absolutelyacknowledge not all soldiers in all formations are experiencing this transformation yet.

Looking ahead, my main effort is to accelerate modernisation, prioritising the Corps and those closest to the fight, our Forward Land Forces.

I want to deepen our integration with SMEs through Taskforce RAPSTONE, with a clearer front door, simplifying our requirements into shared problems to solve. In short, we’ll be a better customer, standing shoulder-to-shoulder as genuine mission partners, in perpetual prototyping mode.

But finally and most importantly my focus this year is also on our people.

It’s absolutely pointless transforming if we don’t have enough of the right people, create the right environment for them to thrive, nor teach them the right skills. This is not just about recruiting and TEAMWORK, important though they are.

At a fundamental level, we are rethinking what it means to be a soldier in the 21st century, because 21st century soldiering is going to be different in so many ways. At the heart lies the need for strong ethical and moral values to withstand the pressures of combat, and we have a role to project that narrative deeper and wider into society, including our youth, whether through the cadets or educational pathways, or by the example of our service, not least to help protect them and ourselves from the toxic influences of racism, hate, homophobia, and misogyny, which are the antithesis of what we need in our soldiers and citizens.

I’m reminded of Monty’s memoirs where he said I shall take away many impressions into the evening of life. But the one I shall treasure above all is the picture of the British soldier – staunch and tenacious in adversity, kind and gentle in victory – the figure to whom the nation has again and again, in the hour of adversity, owed its safety and its honour.

That’s who we need and that’s who we want – the British soldier as the unrivalled force multiplier. And all that I have seen this year confirms the Army remains a place that creates memories for a lifetime, offering adventure, skills, camaraderie and a place of belonging – whoever you are, wherever you come from and whatever you do.

It’s very common to find people in the Army who grew up in some of the most deprived areas of our country. Many chose to become cadets to build confidence and find new friends. Many, just six years after joining, are earning £45,000 a year, with apprenticeships under their belts and their families in good-value accommodation,. This is a story told up and down the land amongst our officers and soldiers…testament to the Army’s extraordinary record on social mobility and our status as the country’s leading provider of apprenticeships, with over 13,000 at any one time.

So, to those who aspire to be make a difference, come and join us. Whether as a regular or a reserve, we’re making it easier and faster to do so, more digital and intuitive, and with greater choice and opportunity. You can change your life through the Army, so why don’t you?

To conclude this opening speech, you’d not be surprised to hear a Chief of the General Staff remind you of the uncertain and dangerous times we live in. They are, and I have.

With the commitments outlined in the vision of the SDR, we are building ever more lethal land forces, capable of operating over ever greater distances, in ways that will make fighting us such an unfair proposition that no-one in the right mind would do so. But if they try, we would fight.

That is the Army the Nation needs, NATO wants, and frankly, our soldiers deserve.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 9 June 2025.

Defence Secretary John Healey co-chairs the first Defence Industrial Joint Council meeting today, bringing together defence firms, trade unions and investors to forge a new partnership aimed at improving warfighting readiness, driving innovation and boosting British jobs.

• Defence Secretary to co-chair inaugural Defence Industrial Joint Council meeting at Hadean’s London headquarters.
• Council members include primes, tech companies, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), trade unions and investors, bringing diverse defence industry expertise from all across the UK to the heart of defence decision-making.
• Focus on delivering the Government’s Plan for Change by driving jobs and prosperity through a new partnership with industry and driving procurement reforms, marking start of London Tech Week and following launch of the Strategic Defence Review.

The UK’s drive to improve warfighting readiness and turbocharge defence innovation will be the focus of the first ever meeting of the Government’s new Defence Industrial Joint Council (DIJC) today – bringing together Ministers and defence firms of all sizes with trade unions and investors.

Co-chaired by the Secretary of State for Defence, John Healey and Dr. Charles Woodburn, Chief Executive Officer at BAE Systems, the meeting comes at a significant moment for defence, following the publication of the Government’s Strategic Defence Review and in the lead-up to the Defence Industrial Strategy’s publication this summer.

Industry, innovators and investors will benefit from the new partnership with UK Defence, enabling better decision-making and communication between the MOD and its industry partners, boosting British jobs and national security, underpinning the Government’s Plan for Change.

This comes as the Prime Minister made the historic commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of UK GDP by April 2027, recognising the critical importance of military readiness in an era of heightened global uncertainty.

Closer collaboration with the defence industry was a key focus of the Strategic Defence Review, which saw the UK committing to:

• Investing £6bn in munitions this parliament, including £1.5bn in an “always on” pipeline for munitions and building at least 6 new energetics and munitions factories in the UK, generating over 1,000 jobs and boosting export potential.
• Establishing UK Defence Innovation with £400m to fund and grow UK based companies.
• Creating a new Defence Exports Office in the Ministry of Defence to drive exports to our allies and growth at home.
• Introducing radical new reforms to speed up defence procurement.

Defence Secretary John Healey MP said:

National security is at the heart of our Plan for Change and is essential for economic security. We are sending a signal to industry and to our adversaries: with a strong UK defence sector we will make Britain secure at home and strong abroad.

It is an honour to co-chair the inaugural meeting of the Defence Industrial Joint Council, through which we can forge a new and improved partnership between government and industry, while also bringing trade unions and investors closer to the heart of defence decision-making. I am proud that this council brings together, for the first time, the full range of voices across UK Defence.

UK Defence is open for business and driving defence as an engine for economic growth, boosting British jobs across the UK.

The DIJC replaces the former Defence Suppliers Forum and aims to harness a wider, and more diverse set of defence expertise to shape the future of Britain’s defence manufacturing, supply chain and innovation – including trade union representation alongside SMEs and investors for the first time.

The Council is underpinned by a commitment to continually refresh and widen its membership, to champion new entrants to the defence sector. The diversity of the DIJC’s members reflects the defence sector of the future, a joint endeavour characterised by innovation and efficiency.

The meeting coincides with the first day of London Tech Week, serving as a reminder of the cutting-edge innovation delivered through defence tech year-round and its contribution to keeping the UK safe at home and strong abroad. Innovation as a driver for growth has been recognised by government with a commitment to ringfencing 10% defence budget for investment in novel technologies.

Dr. Charles Woodburn, Chief Executive Officer at BAE Systems said:

Today’s meeting of the Defence Industrial Joint Council is an important moment, bringing together defence companies of all sizes, along with trade unions and investors, to support implementation of the Government’s forthcoming Defence Industrial Strategy.

Improved collaboration and communication will enable industry to continue investing in new technologies, facilities and our workforce to create a stronger UK defence industrial base ready to meet evolving military requirements in an increasingly uncertain world.

Innovation can be delivered most efficiently through partnerships between the public and private sectors, exemplified by the latest remotely operated underwater robot developed by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) with small and medium enterprises. By modifying a commercially available remotely operated vehicle, Dstl and its industry partners have created a prototype which might soon be able to save lives at sea for the Royal Navy and prevent adversaries from sabotaging undersea cables and pipelines.

Background

Members of the DIJC include:

• Secretary of State for Defence (DIJC Chair)
• Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry (DIJC Vice Chair)
• Charles Woodburn, BAE Systems (Sector Chair)
• Michael Ord, Chemring (Sector Vice Chair)
• Fiona Murray, NATO Innovation Fund (Sector Vice Chair)
• Kevin Craven, ADS
• Kata Escott, Airbus Defence and Space
• David Lockwood, Babcock
• Gary Smith, GMB Union
• Craig Beddis, Hadean
• Ned Baker, Helsing
• Kerry Baldwin, IQ Capital
• Joanne O’Doherty, Kinsetsu
• Paul Livingston, Lockheed Martin UK
• Andrew Kinniburgh, Make UK
• Nick Sharpe, Modini Limited
• Louis Mosley, Palantir
• Mike Clancy, Prospect Union
• Steve Wadey, QinetiQ
• Tufan Erginbilgic, Rolls-Royce
• Julian David, techUK
• Steve Turner, Unite the Union
• Graham Booth, 2iC

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 9 June 2025.

Government delivering on Strategic Defence Review to turbocharge UK defence industry and drive ‘NATO-first’ approach.

Innovation and growth through the UK’s world-leading defence industry was the focus of a visit to a Sheffield factory today by the Defence Secretary and NATO Secretary General.

Defence Secretary, John Healey and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte toured Sheffield Forgemasters, which manufactures specialist steel parts used in critical defence programmes, including nuclear-grade steel components for the Royal Navy’s attack submarines.

The factory, which employs 725 skilled staff, is symbolic of the government’s plan to harness defence as an engine for growth and deliver on the Plan for Change, and how investment in the UK’s defence industry not only boosts British jobs but strengthens the defence and deterrence of the NATO alliance.

Sheffield Forgemasters has been manufacturing components for nuclear powered, conventionally armed submarines with more than £200m worth of contracts in place under the AUKUS programme. The Government confirmed plans last week to deliver up to 12 SSN-AUKUS attack submarines, which will further strengthen the UK’s contribution to NATO in addition to creating thousands of jobs across the UK.

It comes the week after the publication of the Government’s Strategic Defence Review (SDR), which saw the government commit billions of pounds in investment for British defence companies, driving innovation and supporting thousands of jobs around the country – delivering on the Government’s Plan for Change.

The NATO Secretary General has welcomed the industry focus of the SDR and highlighted how it will be key to supporting the deterrent effect of the alliance while boosting collective security.

Defence Secretary, John Healey said:

Sheffield Forgemasters sits in one of Britain’s proudest industrial heartlands, and it is at the heart of our drive to shift our sovereign defence industry to warfighting readiness, supporting hundreds of skilled jobs in the process. The work is ensuring this government’s commitment to the defence dividend is met, delivering on the Plan for Change.

It was a pleasure to tour its factory with the NATO Secretary General, where we discussed this government’s plan to put NATO first as we deliver on our landmark Strategic Defence Review.

NATO is critical to UK security and global security, which is why we are stepping up to lead in Europe, investing in powerful new technologies to support growth and boost our national security.

NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte:

The renewal of the UK’s defence industry will not only enhance Allied security but boost national prosperity as well. It is a vital component in ensuring warfighting readiness.

The United Kingdom has a rich heritage in manufacturing and innovation, and Sheffield Forgemasters is an excellent example of this. Harnessing this legacy will be critical to enabling NATO to effectively deter and defend against future threats.

Sheffield Forgemasters will be crucial to delivering the plans set out in the SDR, as they restart manufacturing for artillery gun barrels, the first time they have been produced by the UK in decades underlining the defence dividend delivered by this government’s spending uplift. This follows the Prime Minister’s historic commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 and ambition for 3% in the next Parliament.

Their work also supports vital equipment supplied to Ukraine, such as L119 Light Guns and the AS90 self-propelled gun.

It comes after major announcements following the SDR, including: the building of up to a dozen new attack submarines for the Royal Navy; £5bn of confirmed investment in drone and laser weapon technology, up to 7,000 new UK-built long-range weapons to be procured; at least six new munitions and energetics factories in the UK; more than £1.5 billion to improve the state of military housing; and more than £1 billion for pioneering technology to spearhead battlefield engagements.

Sheffield Forgemasters plays a vital role in this National Endeavour as part of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise – the partnership of organisations that operate, maintain, renew, and sustain the UK’s nuclear deterrent.

The nuclear deterrent is the bedrock of the UK’s national security, helping to guarantee the safety of the UK and our NATO allies.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 5 June 2025.

British Army and Royal Navy to invest in innovative new programmes, through increased investment in drones and novel technologies to transform warfighting capability.

The Government is ramping up investment in new and emerging technologies for the Army and Royal Navy to provide a major boost in lethality and the effectiveness of their military operations around the world, following the Strategic Defence Review.

The Army ​will deliver a tenfold increase in lethality over the next ten years by harnessing firepower, surveillance technology, autonomy, digital connectivity, and data – leading the way in NATO in its use of technology to change how it fights, improving speed and accuracy.

The Royal Navy will also ramp up new drone systems as part of an evolution in how it fights, moving towards a mix of crewed, uncrewed, and increasingly autonomous capabilities to secure the North Atlantic for the UK and NATO.

The Defence Secretary will outline the Government’s plan for the biggest transformation of the Armed Forces in memory and its approach to put NATO first during a meeting of NATO Defence Ministers in Brussels today (Thursday).

Following the Prime Minister’s commitment to the largest sustained increase to UK defence spending since the end of the Cold War, the Ministry of Defence will move to spending at least 10% of its budget on drones and novel technologies. This delivers on the government’s commitment to invest £5bn on new drone and laser weapon technology, supporting thousands of jobs around the country, as part of the Government’s Plan for Change.

Key to increasing Army lethality will be the ability to rapidly find and strike enemy targets. Prioritisation of the ‘Digital Targeting Web’ will increase the pace and scale of change already being tested through Army initiatives like ASGARD, which is being delivered to British troops deployed with the NATO Forward Land Forces (FLF) in Estonia.

In the last week, the government launched procurement for a new open framework to encourage defence companies to submit concepts for new digital systems that could be integrated into ASGARD. The aim is to exploit advanced technologies such as AI and uncrewed capabilities, enabling the development of advanced digital ‘Decision’ making on the battlefield.

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said:

We will invest in technology to give our troops the edge in the battlefields of the future; transforming our Armed Forces and boosting our warfighting readiness.

This will increase our lethality, provide a powerful deterrent to our adversaries, and put the UK at the leading edge of innovation in NATO.

We will back UK business to innovate at a war time pace; creating highly skilled jobs and fast-tracking the weapons of tomorrow into the hands of our warfighters, as part of our Government’s Plan for Change.

The government’s Strategic Defence Review plan will commit the UK to step up on European security by leading in NATO, with strengthened nuclear, new tech, and updated conventional capabilities – learning the lessons from the battlefield in Ukraine.

As part of our commitment to NATO, during his visit, the Defence Secretary will confirm for the first time that UK military liaison officers will join the development of NATO’s Forward Land Forces (FLF) Finland. These officers will work with both Sweden, as the Framework Nation, and Finland as they develop FLF Finland – a vital component to strengthening the Alliance’s deterrence posture on the Eastern Flank.

On the sidelines of the meetings, the Defence Secretary is expected to join defence ministers from Canada, Denmark, Norway and Poland who will sign a document to join the UK-led NATO Flight Training Europe project, that delivers a network of training campuses to train pilots for jet fighters, helicopters, and transport aircraft.

To boost the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier operations, the government will invest in the cutting-edge of NATO capability—moving to have the first ‘hybrid’ carrier airwings in Europe, where the aircraft carrier’s F-35B jet fighters are complemented by autonomous collaborative platforms in the air and drones.

The Navy is moving towards a “New Hybrid” fleet that exploits autonomy and uncrewed systems – along with conventional warships – for a mix of equipment and weapons. The UK’s Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers are two of the most powerful warships the UK has ever built and, following the Strategic Defence Review, the Royal Navy’s Carrier Strike programme will evolve into ‘hybrid’ carrier airwings, exploiting the latest technology to combine crewed and uncrewed platforms to make the carrier an even more potent form of deterrence.

On major deployment to the Indo-Pacific, HMS Prince of Wales is heading up the Carrier Strike Group right now with uncrewed air systems onboard. In the future, the carriers’ crewed air wings will be further augmented with more uncrewed systems.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 4 June 2025.

The UK is investing a record £350m this year to increase the supply of drones to Ukraine from a target of 10,000 in 2024 to 100,000 in 2025.

The UK is ramping up its support for Ukraine with a target to achieve a tenfold increase in production and procurement of drones to deliver to Ukraine this year.

With more than 10,000 drones delivered to Ukraine last year by the UK, tens of thousands more have already been delivered towards an ambitious new target of 100,000 drones for the current financial year. The record £350m investment in drones for Ukraine is part of the UK’s £4.5bn military support this year.

As Ukraine’s Armed Forces have demonstrated the effectiveness of drone warfare in defending against Putin’s illegal invasion, the UK has been doubling down on investment in drones with British defence companies, including small to medium sized enterprises, supporting the UK economy and jobs, as part of the government’s Plan for Change.

Convening a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) with his German counterpart, the Defence Secretary will also announce that the UK will spend a further £247m this year on training the Armed Forces of Ukraine, supporting its highly successful programme of training for Ukrainian recruits on British soil, Operation Interflex, which has provided more than 55,000 Ukrainian recruits with basic combat training since 2022 – with contributions from 13 partner nations.

Ukrainian units have confirmed that UK-provided drones have helped stabilise parts of the frontline by driving back Russian attacks and protecting Ukrainian lives, and Defence Intelligence has confirmed that drones currently kill more people than artillery on the frontline in Ukraine.

As well as this, the Defence Secretary will confirm the completed delivery of 140,000 artillery munitions by the UK for Ukraine since the start of 2025, in a vital boost for Ukraine’s frontline troops.

As part of the Strategic Defence Review – published on Monday – the government announced more than £4bn for autonomous systems and drones for the UK Armed Forces, to help learn the lessons from Ukraine. This follows the government’s historic commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of UK GDP by April 2027.

The Defence Secretary is set to join the German Defence Minister, Boris Pistorius, to host Ukrainian Defence Minister, Rustem Umerov, at the latest meeting of the 50-nation strong UDCG at NATO headquarters today (Wednesday).

Defence Secretary John Healey MP said:

The UK is stepping up its support for Ukraine by delivering hundreds of thousands more drones this year and completing a major milestone in the delivery of critical artillery ammunition.

We are learning lessons every day from the battlefield in Ukraine, which British companies are using to develop advanced new drones to help protect Ukraine’s civilians and also strengthen our own national security.

Defence is an engine for growth, delivering on this government’s Plan for Change, and this investment will help keep us secure at home and strong abroad, while ensuring the UK is a world leader in rapidly developing drone technology.

To provide further training and equipment supplies for Ukraine’s forces, the UK will also invest £40m in the trust fund for NATO’s NSATU mission for Ukraine, for which the UK is the framework nation, which is prioritising rapid procurement of spare parts and fuel for vehicles, training, and consumables to support troops in combat.

Artillery is critical to Ukraine’s war effort, holding back Putin’s forces from making significant gains on the frontline. With supply chains around the world under unprecedented strain, securing reliable sources for artillery ammunition is vital for Ukraine’s defence.

Many of the drones built in the UK harness new cutting-edge technology, from highly manoeuvrable first-person view (FPV) drones to precisely attack Russian targets, to interceptor drones designed to boost Ukraine’s air defence by destroying Russian missiles and drones, to new fibre-optic drones which are tethered via a cable which safeguards against jamming from Russian electronic warfare systems.

The UK has also been providing low-cost drones which can drop explosives on Russian positions. Between this type of drone and FPV systems, these two types of drone are reported to be responsible for 60-70% of damage currently caused to Russian equipment.

The UK is fully committed to working with allies to step up support to ensure Ukraine remains in the strongest possible position, which is why £4.5 billion of military support will be provided this year – more than ever before.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 2 June 2025.

More than £4 billion drive towards autonomous systems to shape UK military future and boost export potential, supporting the Plan for Change.

UK troops and warships will be protected by drone and laser weapon technology through a major £5 billion investment, as the UK seeks to become the leading edge of innovation in NATO under the Strategic Defence Review (SDR) and driven by lessons from Ukraine.

The major funding package includes more than £4 billion for autonomous systems and a further investment of nearly £1 billion for Directed Energy Weapons (DEW) this Parliament – including the iconic DragonFire laser – boosting frontline capabilities while creating 300 skilled jobs across the country.

DragonFire is set to be the first high power laser capability entering service from a European nation, with the first Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer due to be fitted in 2027.

The SDR recommends that an immediate priority for force transformation should be a shift towards greater use of autonomy. To help achieve this, it says Defence must incorporate uncrewed and autonomous systems in high numbers over the next five years and make targeted investment in the development of novel directed energy weapons.

Today’s autonomous systems investment – of which more than £2 billion is new funding following the Government‘s historic uplift in defence spending to 2.5% of GDP from 2027– will see autonomous systems, including drones improve accuracy and lethality for our Armed Forces, and boost UK export potential.

It comes after major announcements ahead of the SDR publication, including: the building of up to a dozen new attack submarines for the Royal Navy; up to 7,000 new UK-built long-range weapons to procured; at least six new munitions and energetics factories in the UK; more than £1.5 billion to improve the state of military housing; and more than £1 billion for pioneering technology to spearhead battlefield engagements.

The new DEW capabilities will give the UK an edge, creating low cost and sustainable alternatives to missiles to shoot down targets, such as drones, at the speed of light, reduce collateral damage and have a low-cost per shot, reducing reliance on expensive ammunition.

The systems will be tailored to the conditions in which they will operate – whether at sea, on land, or in the air – and will work alongside crewed assets, such as current and future fighter jets.

Both investments reflect the SDR’s vision for UK innovation to be driven by the lessons from Ukraine – harnessing drones, data and digital warfare to make our Armed Forces stronger and safer.

The SDR sets a path for the next decade and beyond to transform defence and make the UK secure at home and strong abroad. It ends the hollowing out of our Armed Forces and will also drive innovation, jobs and growth across the country, allowing the UK to lead in a stronger NATO as part of this Government’s Plan for Change.

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said:

These investments will mean the most significant advance in UK defence technology in decades. We will ensure our Armed Forces have the cutting-edge capabilities they need to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world.

We are delivering the Strategic Defence Review’s vision to put the UK at the leading edge of innovation in NATO, by backing British industry and fast-tracking the kit of the future into the hands of frontline troops.

This Government’s Plan for Change will harness the benefits of technology, create hundreds of new jobs and make defence a powerful engine for economic growth.

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves said:

A strong economy needs a strong national defence. That’s why we are delivering the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War—putting innovation and industrial strength at the centre of our national security strategy.

Additional funding for autonomous systems maximises the defence industry’s potential to drive long term economic growth and productivity – helping us deliver our Plan for Change while keeping the UK safe.

A new DEW will be created for the British Army this decade, alongside DragonFire being integrated on four Royal Navy warships, with the first ship due to be fitted in 2027, forming part of a layered air defence system to better protect UK forces while reducing collateral damage and reducing reliance on expensive ammunition.

DEW technology already supports 200 high-skilled UK jobs, with a further 300 positions to be created across the Ministry of Defence and industry partners. It’s another example of defence as an engine for UK economic growth, delivering on the Plan for Change.

In addition, a new Drone Centre will be established to accelerate exploitation of small, uncrewed air systems across all three military services, helping to deliver them to the front line faster.

The Centre will provide a central knowledge base to tackle any emerging legislative changes, develop best practice and better manage the interaction with industry. Crucially, it will apply battlefield lessons from Ukraine where drones now kill more people than traditional artillery. Detailed organisational arrangements will be developed over the coming months.

During the SDR process, 1,700 individuals, political parties, and organisations submitted more than 8,000 responses. 200 companies provided written contributions, more than 120 senior experts took part in the review and challenge panels, and nearly 50 meetings took place between the Reviewers and our senior military figures.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 1 June 2025.

• UK to build up to 12 attack submarines as part of AUKUS programme in response to the rapidly increasing threats
• Builds on £15 billion investment set out for the UK’s sovereign nuclear warhead programme, keeping the UK safe for generations to come and delivering on the Plan for Change
• Nuclear investments will transform critical parts of the defence nuclear industry, directly supporting 30,000 highly skilled jobs up-and-down the country and the doubling of apprentice and graduate roles across the next ten years.

The Prime Minister will announce tomorrow that the UK’s conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine fleet will be significantly expanded, with up to 12 new SSN-AUKUS boats to be built.

The increase in submarines will transform the UK’s submarine building industry and, following the £15 billion investment in the warhead programme outlined, will deliver on this government’s Plan for Change, supporting 30,000 highly skilled jobs up-and-down the country well into the 2030s, as well as helping work to deliver 30,000 apprenticeships and 14,000 graduate roles across the next ten years.

The announcement comes as the government unveils its new Strategic Defence Review tomorrow. The externally-led review is expected to recommend that our Armed Forces move to warfighting readiness to deter the growing threats faced by the UK. The report makes 62 recommendations, which the government is expected to accept in full.

Responding to the report, the government will make significant commitments to its armed forces and deliver greater security for working people through the government’s Plan for Change.

That includes:

• A landmark shift in our deterrence and defence: moving to warfighting readiness to deter threats and strengthen security in the Euro Atlantic area;
• Increasing stockpiles of munitions and support equipment, ensuring that production capacities can rapidly scale up in response to crises or war;
• The procurement of up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons for the UK Armed Forces, supporting around 800 defence jobs, and boosting our military capabilities
• A new CyberEM Command to put the UK at the forefront of cyber operations, alongside £1bn investment in pioneering digital capability; and
• Improving the lives of thousands of British military personnel and their families through more than £1.5 billion of additional funding to repair and renew armed forces housing.

The Prime Minister is expected to say:

From the supply lines to the front lines, this government is foursquare behind the men and women upholding our nation’s freedom and security.

National security is the foundation of my Plan for Change, and this plan will ensure Britain is secure at home and strong abroad, while delivering a defence dividend of well-paid jobs up and down the country.

This Strategic Defence Review will ensure the UK rises to the challenge and our Armed Forces have the equipment they need that keeps us safe at home while driving greater opportunity for our engineers, shipbuilders and technicians of the future.

Alongside the commitment to expand the UK’s conventionally armed attack submarine fleet, the government is securing the future of the Royal Navy’s Continuous At Sea Nuclear Deterrent, backed by a £15 billion investment into the sovereign warhead programme in this parliament and supporting more than 9,000 jobs.

It is the first time the UK has outlined the full scale of its investment plans in its warhead programmes and is further evidence of the Government’s triple lock commitment to the nuclear deterrent: to maintain our continuous at-sea deterrent; to build the new fleet of Dreadnought submarines; and to deliver all future upgrades necessary.

This will see significant modernisation of infrastructure at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) in Aldermaston and supporting more than 9,000 jobs at the Berkshire site, and thousands more across the UK supply chain – from Scotland to Somerset.

The nuclear warhead programme includes some of the most advanced and sensitive science, engineering and manufacturing facilities in the UK.

Both the UK’s sovereign warhead programme and the UK’s conventionally-armed submarine fleet will make Britain and NATO safe for decades to come.

Defence Secretary John Healey MP said:

Our outstanding submariners patrol 24/7 to keep us and our allies safe, but we know that threats are increasing and we must act decisively to face down Russian aggression.

With new state-of-the-art submarines patrolling international waters and our own nuclear warhead programme on British shores, we are making Britain secure at home and strong abroad, while delivering on our Plan for Change with 30,000 highly-skilled jobs across the country.

Already supporting more than 400,000 skilled British jobs, UK defence is a crucial engine for economic growth, delivering on the government’s Plan for Change – supported by the Government’s historic uplift in defence spending to 2.5% of GDP from 2027, and the ambition to hit 3% in the next parliament, when economic and fiscal conditionals allow.

Currently the UK is set to operate 7 Astute Class attack submarines, which will be replaced with an increased fleet of up to 12 SSN-AUKUS submarines from the late 2030s.

The boost to the SSN-AUKUS programme will see a major expansion of industrial capability at Barrow and Raynesway, Derby, with the build of a new submarine every 18 months in the future.

The increase in capacity at the two sites will allow the UK to increase its fleet to up to 12 attack boats, as part of the AUKUS partnership.

To ensure the demands of this expanded programme can be met, government is working closely with industry partners to rapidly expand training and development opportunities, aiming to double defence and civil nuclear apprentice and graduate intakes. This will result in 30,000 apprenticeships and 14,000 graduate roles over the next ten years.

The SDR calls for significant investment into the UK sovereign warhead programme this parliament, while maintaining the existing stockpile.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 1 June 2025.

Procurement of up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons and £1.5 billion to build at least six munitions and energetics factories.

The UK will build at least six new munitions and energetics factories and thousands more long-range weapons to strengthen Britain’s Armed Forces and create new jobs across the country.

Through the Strategic Defence Review – published in the coming days – the UK’s defence and deterrence is being bolstered with thousands of long-range weapons and a new £1.5 billion government investment in munitions and energetics factories.

Together the investment will back around 1,800 highly-skilled jobs across the UK, putting money in the pockets of working people, and supporting the government’s Plan for Change by driving growth in every region and nation.

The SDR recommends creating an ‘always on’ munitions production capacity in the UK allowing production to be scaled up at speed if needed. It says the MOD should also lay the industrial foundations for an uplift in munitions stockpiles to meet the demand of high-tempo warfare.

Taking the lessons from Ukraine which shows that our military is only as strong as the industry that stands behind it, the measures will boost British jobs while improving the warfighting readiness of both British Armed Forces and industry.

The additional funding will see UK munitions spend hit £6 billion this Parliament. It follows the Prime Minister’s historic commitment to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP, recognising the critical importance of military readiness in an era of heightened global uncertainty.

Commitments include:

• £1.5 billion in an “always on” pipeline for munitions and building at least 6 new energetics and munitions factories in the UK. Creating more than 1,000 skilled manufacturing jobs, the factories will produce munitions and energetics, which are key components of weapons, including propellants, explosives, and pyrotechnics.
• Up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons for the UK Armed Forces, supporting around 800 defence jobs.The lessons from Ukraine demonstrate the importance of long-range weaponry and boosting our military capabilities.

The SDR sets a path for the next decade and beyond to transform defence and make the UK secure at home and strong abroad. It ends the hollowing out of our Armed Forces and will also drive innovation, jobs and growth across the country, allowing the UK to lead in a stronger NATO.

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said:

The hard-fought lessons from Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine show a military is only as strong as the industry that stands behind them.

We are strengthening the UK’s industrial base to better deter our adversaries and make the UK secure at home and strong abroad.

We will embrace the Strategic Defence Review; making defence an engine for economic growth and boosting skilled jobs in every nation and region as part of our Government’s Plan for Change.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said:

A strong economy needs a strong national defence, and investing in weaponry and munitions and backing nearly 2,000 jobs across Britain in doing so is proof the two go hand-in-hand.

We are delivering both security for working people in an uncertain world and good jobs, putting more money in people’s pockets as part of our Plan for Change.

The new investments will form an ‘always-on’ approach for priority munitions. They will provide a steady drumbeat of investment to industry sustaining a thriving defence industrial base that drives growth and jobs to deliver on the Plan for Change, while strengthening the UK’s commitment to NATO.

The funding will help transform the UK’s Armed Forces readiness and ability to endure in prolonged campaigns, providing the industrial foundations needed to support our Armed Forces in warfare, as demonstrated by the conflict in Ukraine.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 31 May 2025.

Record additional funding for forces family housing to tackle state of accommodation, and builds on the Defence Consumer Charter to transform living conditions for service families.

• More than £1.5 billion extra for forces family housing means more than £7 billion to be spent on military accommodation in this Parliament, tackling the poor state of forces accommodation across the country.
• Record investment builds on the new Defence Consumer Charter to transform living conditions for military families after landmark deal to bring 36,347 homes back into public ownership.
• New funding will support urgent repairs and long-term renewal of military housing across the nations and regions of the UK.

Thousands of British military personnel and their families will have their lives improved through more than £1.5 billion of additional funding to improve accommodation for the UK Armed Forces.

The investment will be confirmed as part of the launch of the Government’s upcoming Strategic Defence Review (SDR), helping renew the nation’s contract with those who serve, supporting the government’s Plan for Change.

Through the upcoming SDR more than £1.5 billion of new investment into service family accommodation will unlock rapid work to tackle the poor state of forces housing – with investment increasing from this year – helping to support recruitment, retention and morale.

This will include urgent repairs and maintenance, from fixing unreliable boilers and leaky roofs to tackling damp and mould in service family accommodation, alongside development of new forces housing, as part of unlocking the wider potential for housing development on surplus MOD land.

The additional funding for accommodation means more than £7 billion will be spent across this Parliament on service family accommodation and new build single living accommodation to deliver a generational renewal of Armed Forces accommodation. This will be guided by the forthcoming Defence Housing Strategy – which is proceeding at pace and has already seen the announcement of a new Consumer Charter to strengthen housing standards for forces families.

The SDR will set a path for the next decade to transform defence and make the UK secure at home and strong abroad. It will end the hollowing out of our Armed Forces and make defence an engine for growth across the UK.

Defence Secretary, John Healey MP said:

Our Armed Forces personnel make extraordinary sacrifices to serve our country.

For too long, many military families have lived in sub-standard homes, but this government is taking decisive action to fix the dire state of military accommodation and ensure that our heroes and their loved ones live in the homes they deserve.

We are investing and acting fast, to fix forces housing and renew the nation’s contract with those who serve and deliver on our Plan for Change.

The delivery of the Government’s new Consumer Charter will see immediate investment in urgent renovation of 1,000 homes in most need of repair. The Charter will also see basic consumer rights rapidly introduced for forces families, including essential property information and higher move-in standards, more reliable repairs, a named housing officer for every family, and access to a robust complaints system – helping to deliver homes fit for our heroes.

The record investment follows the Government’s landmark deal to bring back 36,000 military homes into public ownership, as part of the Prime Minister’s pledge to deliver home fit for heroes.

The SDR will say that the Ministry of Defence should improve the overall standard of military accommodation, including prioritising sites that are in most urgent need of repair. The Terms of Reference for the Review committed to put ‘Defence personnel…at the heart of Defence’s plans.’

The announcement comes alongside another above-inflation pay rise for the Armed Forces, announced by the Government last week. This is the second inflation busting pay rise awarded by the Government since last July, with last year’s award representing the biggest pay rise for Armed Forces personnel in over 20 years.