New Commons committee to scrutinise nuclear spending

A new House of Commons committee appointed by the Prime Minister is to be established to scrutinise expenditure and programmes across the Defence Nuclear Enterprise, according to the annual update to Parliament published this week.

The commitment appears among the recommendations of the Strategic Defence Review on which Wes Streeting reports progress, and the update describes the intention as providing “the public with the confidence that taxpayer money is being spent wisely on this critical area”. The Defence Secretary writes that the department is “working with Parliament to establish a new House of Commons-only Committee, appointed by the Prime Minister, to conduct scrutiny of DNE expenditure and programmes”.

The sums involved explain the level of parliamentary interest, given that the enterprise spent £12 billion in the 2025/26 financial year, projects spend of over £100 billion through British suppliers over the next ten years, and will receive in excess of £20 billion more between 2026/27 and 2029/30 than across the previous four years.

It also operates under a ring-fenced budget with greater delegated spending authority than before, an arrangement the update says enables faster decision making and a stronger focus on outcomes and delivery, and which places a considerable volume of public money outside the normal departmental approval chains.

Two further Strategic Defence Review recommendations are reported as progressing, the first of which covers increasing industrial productivity by removing barriers and investing in the people and places supporting the enterprise, which the update says includes amendment of the Single Source Contract Regulations, implementation of John Fingleton’s review of nuclear regulation, investment in Team Barrow and Team Plymouth, and delivery of the Skills Plan.

The second concerns Britain joining NATO’s dual capable aircraft nuclear mission once F-35A aircraft have been delivered, a decision the update says will complement the operationally independent deterrent.

On regulation, the Fingleton review has already appeared in ministerial answers elsewhere. Luke Pollard told Parliament this month that the department is exploring opportunities arising from it to accelerate work on 10 and 14 Dock at Devonport, where the recommissioning of 14 Dock is intended to allow legacy submarine defuelling operations to resume. The update records that the enterprise has worked under the Chief of Defence Nuclear to break down silos, strengthen delivery and ensure greater integration between its programmes, with the rest of the department and with wider government, as part of Defence Reform.

Mr Streeting writes that the success of what the government calls the National Endeavour “requires a strong Defence, one that strives for greater efficiency, value for money, and reduced duplication”.

The enterprise brings together the Defence Nuclear Organisation within the Ministry of Defence, the Royal Navy, Cyber and Specialist Operations Command, and AWE Nuclear Security Technologies.