Source · Select Committees · Scottish Affairs Committee
Recommendation 9
9
Accepted
Current geopolitics highlight importance of sovereign space capacity for national and European security.
Conclusion
The current geopolitical climate demonstrates the importance of supporting and securing sovereign space capacity—particularly through responsive and defence ready infrastructure—if not, its ability to protect national and European security interests could be severely compromised. (Conclusion, Paragraph 59)
Government response summary AI-generated
The government recognizes the importance of domestic launch capability for national security and resilience, highlighting significant past and ongoing investments in Scottish spaceports and launch companies.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government · verbatim extract
Accepted
The Ministry of Defence is not currently in a position to implement any recommendation related specifically to responsive launch services as Space Command remains focussed on building out initial capabilities. The Ministry of Defence maintains a requirement for assured access to commercially developed launch capabilities. Although the Ministry of Defence does not currently have a requirement for independent launch systems, the Ministry of Defence continues to support the UK Government’s launch ambitions. While the UK launch industry is in its early stages, collaboration between government and industry, and with international partners, will be key in building a scalable and sustainable launch capability. We are supporting this through a number of channels, including the NATO STARLIFT project, through which we have sought opportunities to promote UK industry and position UK launch solutions at the forefront of multinational capability cooperation.
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