Sir Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of reports of the outsourcing by a commercial subcontractor of work to coders based in Belarus; what remedial steps he has taken; whether he has made changes to his Department's procedures; and whether sanctions have been imposed.  [2701]

[Due for Answer on 4 September. Answered on 6 September.]

ANSWER

The Minister of State for Defence Procurement and Industry (Maria Eagle): Both the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Rolls-Royce Submarines (RRS) investigated a subcontractor's outsourcing of development work for a RRS intranet page; this IT system is separate to the RRS classified systems. The investigation found no evidence that Belarusian nationals had access to sensitive information and concluded that no change to MOD procurement policy was required. No formal sanctions were imposed. Defence took steps to ensure and confirm that there had been no compromise of classified information. The safety and security of the United Kingdom's nuclear submarines and the Deterrent, including the Service personnel who operate it, remain our highest priority. Our security processes are under constant review to ensure best practice.