Extract from Defence Questions: General Dynamics - Nov 7

Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab): General Dynamics reports strong progress on the troubled Ajax programme, so can the Secretary of State confirm that a solution to the noise and vibration issues has now been found?

The Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ben Wallace): First, we expect General Dynamics to stick within the terms of its contract, and we will stick to our side of the contract. The user validation trials, which are the first steps in getting this Ajax programme back on track, have now been completed. We are looking at the results and hope to start the next phase soon, which is good news all round.