Defence: Finance
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 7 of his department’s Defence Industrial Strategy, published 8 September 2025, what progress has been made on the £182 million investment to improve the future skills of the workforce.
Answered by Ministry of Defence
In the Defence Industrial Strategy, we committed £182 million to a Defence Industry Skills package that will ensure the defence industry has the workforce it requires both now and in the future.
Since the Strategy’s publication, we have announced £50m for five Defence Technical Excellence Colleges (DTECs) in England. The DTECs will be specialist training centres for students aged 16 and above that will equip them with the cutting-edge technical skills required for critical defence roles. We are also working to establish two DTECs in Scotland and one in Wales.
£80 million has been invested in 24 Higher Education institutions across England, which will support the creation of 2,400 new student places on courses strategically important for defence. This capacity increase will start from the 2026-27 academic year.
The Defence Universities Alliance has been launched, whose aim is to promote careers within the defence industry, grow defence research and support collaboration between the MOD, academia and industry.
Work continues across government and with industry partners to develop and deliver the remaining elements of the Defence Industry Skills package.
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