Future Rapid Effect System

Mr. Gerald Howarth
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) when he expects to announce his decision on the preferred bidder for the Future Rapid Effect System armoured reconnaissance vehicle contract;

(2) what advice his Department received from the Treasury in connection with the choice of design for the Future Rapid Effect System armoured reconnaissance vehicle.

Mr. Quentin Davies
The Future Rapid Effect System programme has been recast from a single programme into a set of constituent projects, namely: the Specialist Vehicles; the Utility Vehicles; and the Manoeuvre Support Vehicles. An announcement on the competition for the Specialist Vehicle project has been made today in a written ministerial statement by the Secretary of State for Defence.

HM Treasury has provided no advice to the Department regarding the choice of design for the Specialist Vehicle capability. The MOD reached its own decision on the choice of design based on the advice of expert assessment panels.