The report, drafted and agreed by both Committees, marks the culmination of the first joint Inquiry between a House of Commons Committee and a Committee of a non-UK legislature.
The Inquiry, which is a new step in UK-French inter-parliamentary cooperation on defence and national security matters, has focused on one of the most ambitious products of the Lancaster House Agreement signed between the UK and French Governments in 2010 – the Future Cruise/Anti-Ship Weapon (FC/ASW) programme.
Government response published
This joint inquiry with the French National Assembly into the Future anti-ship missile system, will review the future cruise/anti-ship weapon (FC/ASW) programme that was launched by a bilateral agreement signed on 28 March 2017.
The new generation of missiles that the two countries hope to develop by 2030 will be replacing the existing Exocet, Harpoon, SCALP and Storm Shadow missiles.
Other issues to be considered by the inquiry will be:
- the two Navies’ requirements for the next generation of anti-ship missiles, including range, speed, stealth and terminal guidance;
- the capability of the UK and French defence industries to meet these requirements, whether separately or jointly; and
- the availability of suitable missiles from other suppliers