During questions to Defence ministers in the House of Commons
today, (Blaenau Gwent) asked: What
recent estimate he has made of the cost of the AJAX?
Defence Minister replied that, as reported by
the IPA in July 2021, the budgeted cost of AJAX was £6.354
billion. Forecasts were updated twice-yearly and the current
forecast was that it would deliver under budget of £5.915
billion, though this was subject to change. This included a £5.5
billion firm contract with General Dynamics.
Mr Smith said the latest document on AJAX pointed to “an alphabet
soup of accountabilities, a saga of poor procurement and says the
vehicle thus far is not fit for purpose. And, of course, it has
been a health and safety minefield.” He called for a timeline for
fixing these issues.
Mr Quin replied that the government had been right to commission
and publish the report on AJAX. He said the government would work
with GD to fix the issues. A draft report had been received from
Millbrook. “We will not get to grips with that until July but
there is progress being made.” GD believed they could resolve the
issues but that was something to be tested very carefully. “This
is a project we have invested very heavily in. It is an important
capability and we are determined to make it work if we possibly
can.”
Dame said the AJAX project was
emblematic of a number of wasteful decisions made by the last
Labour government.
Shadow Minister said the government’s own
report found ministers had been in the dark about the serious
issues with AJAX for two years.
Mr Quin replied that the government had accepted the vast
majority of recommendations on AJAX improvements. On procurement
generally, it was most important to make certain that all people
with a view on safety were involved in the decision-making
process. Health and safety would be a priority.
The full Hansard of defence questions will be sent when it is
available.
