Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 5.22 on page 32 of his Department's report, Defence in a competitive age, CP411, published in March 2021, how the UK plans to make a bigger and more consistent contribution to the Five Power Defence Arrangements.
Answer
The UK takes its commitment to the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) very seriously. As part of our wider effort to strengthen the UK's defence cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, we will make a bigger and more consistent contribution to the Arrangements. This includes: our contribution to FPDA's programme of military exercises, our support for FPDA's HQ Integrated Area Defence System (HQ IADS), our participation in FPDA's governance structures, as well as our ongoing support for the evolution of the Arrangements to ensure they remain relevant.