Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what options for improving procurement processes his Department identified from the Shrivenham Acquisition Workshop. [37290]

Peter Luff MP; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State: The 5(th) Shrivenham Acquisition Workshop, which I attended, brought together senior decision makers from Government and Industry in November last year.

The following themes were addressed through workshops: Attacking acquisition costs in non-equipment areas; Achieving long term value across industry sectors; Affordable and sustainable operational capability; Maximising returns on Research and Technology investment across defence and security; and Exports and sovereignty. Each of these workshops made a number of detailed recommendations for proposed actions. The principal options for improving procurement processes fall within the themes of long-term value, sustainable capability, and exportability.

These recommendations are being taken forward by the National Defence Industries Council, a joint forum between the MOD and industry and I will be following that work carefully.