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Defence Industrial Strategy

I thank my hon. Friend for his remarks about the carrier programme, and he is right about our approach. Yesterday, we allocated responsibilities for 60 per cent. of hull build and ensured a degree of continuity in capability by dovetailing the present carrier fleet with incoming vessels. We are prepared to spend £300 million, but we have made sure that all the negotiating levers will not be handed over to the carrier producers. It is very important to get right the demonstration and fine design stages, because it is there that the downstream cost is incurred. With respect to our openness to competition, I can tell the House that 75 per cent. of our procurement is open to competition. We are not returning to protectionism, but our plans for the remaining 25 per cent. show that we are prepared to maintain a strategic industrial base to supply our armed forces.