New UK Offset Policy: overseas winners must invest back in UK
The MOD has published a new UK Offset Policy requiring overseas firms that win major UK defence contracts to deliver industrial, capability, and economic benefits back into the UK. Details on thresholds and how offsets will be structured are limited at this stage, but the direction is clear: foreign primes bidding on UK programmes will face new obligations to build UK content into their supply chains. For SMEs with credible UK-made products or services, this creates a pull from overseas primes who now have an obligation to find UK partners. Worth watching how the policy is scoped, which contract values trigger it, and which capability areas are prioritised.
Source →MOD names first Director General Innovation with £1.6bn ringfenced budget
Anthony Reeves has been appointed as the MOD's first Director General Innovation, leading the Defence Investment Unit, Dstl, the Defence Uncrewed Systems Centre, and UK Defence Innovation, with a ringfenced £1.6 billion innovation budget. This consolidates four previously separate innovation functions under one leader, which will change how competitions are run, how funding is allocated, and who SMEs need to engage with. Any SME that has been navigating these bodies separately should track how Reeves structures his directorate and whether UKDI or DIU competition pipelines shift as a result.
Source →MOD awards £15m orbital warfare contract to Astroscale
The UK MOD has awarded a £15 million contract to Astroscale for an orbital warfare project. Details beyond the headline figure and programme name are thin. It confirms that orbital and space domain awareness is now a live MOD spending category, not just a policy aspiration, and that non-traditional defence contractors can win at this level. SMEs in space, counter-space, or dual-use sensor technology should note this as evidence of an active procurement channel in this domain.
Source →UK leads AUKUS undersea sensor development after San Diego trials
Following the Maritime Big Play exercise in San Diego, the UK has been designated to lead development of three advanced undersea sensor payloads for uncrewed vehicles under AUKUS. This is a named programme with UK leadership and a specific technology focus, which means MOD and DSTL will be running or commissioning work in this area. SMEs working on acoustic sensors, subsea payloads, UUV integration, or maritime autonomy should watch for associated competitions from UKDI or the Defence Uncrewed Systems Centre, as lead nation status typically generates downstream development contracts.
Source →Project Safari opens MOD test and evaluation facilities to SMEs
MOD and QinetiQ have launched Project Safari, a joint programme designed to give SMEs access to UK test and evaluation facilities. For smaller companies, access to accredited T&E has historically been a barrier to getting technologies through TRL progression and into procurement. Details on how to apply, which facilities are included, and what the cost model looks like are not in the signal, but this is worth following up directly with QinetiQ or MOD if T&E access is currently a bottleneck in your development programme.
Source →The dominant theme today is MOD structuring its innovation and procurement machinery to move faster and keep more value in the UK, through the new DG Innovation role, the Offset Policy, Project Safari, and named AUKUS programme leads.