Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 27
27
Department declined to publish 2024 Equipment Plan due to ongoing spending plan uncertainty.
Conclusion
In November 2024, the Minister for Defence Procurement & Industry wrote to the Chair to say that the Department would not publish a Plan for 2024 because “it would not provide an accurate reflection of this Government’s spending plans and I do not believe it would provide a useful means for Parliament to hold the Department to account on how we will deliver the plan affordably”.56 In March 2025, the Permanent Secretary wrote to the Chair: “In light of the Defence funding announcement made by the Prime Minister on 25th February we are working through the consequences for our future spending and our approach to procurement and as a result what that means for how we might best support the committee and Parliament in its scrutiny of the department’s equipment planning.”57
Government Response
A response document is linked to this report, dated 16 September 2025. Response attribution to this conclusion has not been verified. Read the response document ↗