Defence: Industry
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 97 of his Department’s Defence Industrial Strategy, published 8 September 2025, what steps his Department is taking to promote a NATO first approach to industrial collaboration.
Answered by Ministry of Defence
Since publication of the Defence Industrial Strategy on 8 September 2025, the Department has strengthened collaboration with industry, NATO Allies and international partners, including the United States, to support UK defence exports, deepen strategic partnerships, improve information sharing and promote a NATO-first approach to industrial co-operation. National Armaments International is supporting UK companies to compete overseas, with record successes in 2025 including the UK’s biggest ever warship deal to Norway and the largest fighter jet exports agreement in a generation, promoting global security while boosting growth at home.
The Department is also giving industry clearer long-term demand signals, investing in priority capabilities, strengthening supply chains and rebuilding capacity in critical sectors including munitions, complex weapons, shipbuilding and combat air. Alongside this, it is investing in defence skills, regional growth, innovation and expanded production capacity, while exploring further measures - through the Defence Readiness Bill which is due later this Parliament - to support industrial resilience, readiness and surge capacity.
As part of our NATO-first approach, the UK continues to work with Allies to deliver the ambitions of NATO’s Defence Production Action Plan and NATO’s Industrial Capacity Expansion Pledge to improve industrial readiness, resilience, interoperability and surge capacity across the Alliance. The UK also joined Allies in endorsing the new Strategy for Industry NATO Cooperation at the recent Ankara summit and maintains a strong partnership with the UK delegation to the NATO Industrial Advisory Group (NIAG), enabling senior industrialists to offer expertise and strategic insight on a wide range of security policy, defence planning, and capability issues. The UK’s hosting of the NIAG plenary in June 2026 also showcased a shared government-industry commitment to our national contribution to NATO’s collective capability and the opportunities for Allied industrial cooperation.
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