Question follow-through · 44931
Australia and China: Navy
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with his Australian counterpart on the prevention of Chinese naval (a) incursions and (b) shelling off the coast of Australia.
About this written question
A written question asks a government minister for information in writing. Parliament publishes the question and any answer.
- Answering body
- Ministry of Defence
- Tabled
- 8 Apr 2025
- Target answer date
- 22 Apr 2025
- Answer
- 28 Apr 2025 · 20 calendar days after tabling
Elapsed calendar days describe the record timeline, not whether Parliament considers an answer on time.
More questions by this MP on Defence and foreign affairs
- Army: Pay · 17 Apr 2025
- Commonwealth War Graves Commission: Finance · 17 Apr 2025
- Italy: Military Alliances · 17 Apr 2025
- Japan: Military Alliances · 17 Apr 2025
- Indo-Pacific Region: Navy · 17 Apr 2025
Shared topic keywords suggest a connection; they do not establish a follow-up.
Votes on this topic
- Opposition Day Motion: Defence spending and readiness - Prime Minister's Amendment · 23 Jun 2026
- Opposition day: Defence spending and readiness · 23 Jun 2026
- Armed Forces Bill Report Stage: Amendment 11 · 22 Jun 2026
These Commons divisions share a topic label. The question did not necessarily lead to a vote.
Recorded timeline
8 Apr 2025
Question tabled
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has had discussions with his Australian counterpart on the prevention of Chinese naval (a) incursions and (b) shelling off the coast of Australia.
22 Apr 2025
Target answer date
Date supplied by the official written-questions record.
28 Apr 2025
Answer published
The Secretary of State speaks regularly with his Australian counterpart and last spoke on 11 February. These discussions typically cover a range of issues of mutual interest, including the importance of upholding security and stability in the Indo-Pacific...
Official data retrieved 28 Sept 2026.
Later records
Possible follow-up questions
Strong links require the same MP, department and exact heading. Other same-department questions are shown as unreviewed candidates, not as confirmed follow-ups. No debate link is asserted unless a stable source relationship exists.
Army: Pay
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to increase the pay of soldiers, in the context of planned increases in defence spending.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission: Finance
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK’s financial contributions to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission are sufficient to maintain the graves of UK military personnel.
Italy: Military Alliances
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to increase defence co-operation between the United Kingdom and Italy.
Japan: Military Alliances
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to increase defence co-operation between the United Kingdom and Japan.
Indo-Pacific Region: Navy
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is taking steps to increase the presence of the Royal Navy in the Indo-Pacific region.
Air Force: Chinook Helicopters
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the capabilities of the Royal Air Force Chinook fleet.
Aerospace Industry
17 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent steps he has taken to support the aerospace industry.
Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary: Procurement
29 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he is taking steps to reduce the procurement time of new surface fleet assets for the (a) Royal Navy and (b) Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
Canada: Military Alliances
29 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has taken recent steps to increase naval co-operation between the Royal Navy and the Royal Canadian Navy.
Telecommunications Cables: Seas and Oceans
29 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to increase the security of subsea infrastructure between the UK and Canada.
Telecommunications Cables: Seas and Oceans
29 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to increase security of subsea infrastructure between the United Kingdom and continental Europe.
Guided Weapons
29 Apr 2025 · To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has taken steps to create a sovereign hypersonic missile capability.