To ask Her Majesty's Government how they propose to reduce the “defence deficit” of up to £20 billion identified in a recent report by the UK National Defence Association. [HL1937]

To ask Her Majesty's Government what additional resources they propose to allocate to provide Her Majesty's Armed Forces with all the necessary up-to-date equipment. [HL1938]

The Comprehensive Spending Review announced in July 2007 gave the MoD an average annual increase, in real terms, of 1.5 per cent for the period of the settlement. We undertake routine planning rounds that allocate resources in line with defence priorities and the defence budget, including equipping people on, and training for, operations but also ensuring that we provide the necessary core capabilities for our forces over the longer term.

Outside the core defence budget, the costs of urgent operational requirements (UORs) are met by the reserve. More than £4.2 billion has been approved on emerging UORs for Iraq and Afghanistan since operations began. Furthermore, the Secretary of State for Defence announced on 29 October 2008 more than £700 million for an extra 700 vehicles, including a protected mobility package, further to improve the safety and protection of our troops on operations in Afghanistan. As well as the protected mobility package, we have also agreed with the Treasury an estimate of a further £635 million in 2009-10 for other UORs.