Written question asked by Paul Marsden (Labour) on Thursday, 25 November 1999, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 15 December 1999. It was answered by Peter Kilfoyle (Labour) on Wednesday, 15 December 1999 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence;Defence Procurement Agency

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the advantages of (a) the Meteor missiles made by Matra BAe Dynamics and (b) its US rival; and if he will make a statement. - Inc text of letter from Sir Robert Walmsley of the Defence Procurement Agency.

Answer: Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the advantages of (a) the Meteor missiles made by Matra BAe Dynamics and (b) its US rival; and if he will make a statement. [100597] Mr. Kilfoyle: This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Defence Procurement Agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to my hon. Friend. Letter from Sir Robert Walmsley to Mr. Paul Marsden, dated 15 December 1999: I am replying to your question to the Secretary for Defence about the assessments that have been made of the Meteor and US missile options bid into the Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM) competition. This matter falls within my area of responsibility as Chief of Defence Procurement and Chief Executive of the Defence Procurement Agency. We are currently evaluating the Best and Final Offers we have received in response to the above competition to satisfy the RAF's requirement for a BVRAAM for Eurofighter. The evaluation will take into account a wide range of factors including missile performance, cost, industrial factors and overall value for money and will set out the respective advantages of each option. It remains our intention to announce the outcome of the competition in the new year.

Secondary information