Ministry of Defence written question – answered at on 19 February 2026.
Mel Stride
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether any of the spending included by the government in its calculation of spending 2.6% of GDP on NATO qualifying defence spending by 2027 includes financial transactions.
Luke Pollard
The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence
The Ministry of Defence's financial transactions support the retention of critical sovereign manufacturing capabilities and support our strategic objectives. As an integral part of the UK's national security they are included in the NATO qualifying defence spending figures.
Yes4 people think so
No0 people think not
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Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
