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Defence: Apprentices

Asked by Jim McMahonLabour (Co-op)Ministry of DefenceTabled Answered 11 December 2025UIN 96747

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what measures are in place to help increase defence supply chain apprenticeships in the North West.

Answered by Luke Pollard

As part of the Defence Industrial Strategy, we launched a £182 million skills package which includes initiatives that will support apprenticeships in the defence sector, including the North West. This includes the Graduate and Apprenticeship Clearing System, which will help those candidates who narrowly missed out on a apprenticeship with a defence prime to find other opportunities within the defence supply chain.

This will build on the successful apprentice ecosystem that exists in the North West, including BAE Systems’ Skills Academy at Samlesbury and the Submarine Academy for Skills and Knowledge in Barrow-in-Furness.

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