East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward says the region “needs to be ready and prepared” after co-chairing the first meeting of a newly formed defence council.
The Midlands Defence & Security Industry Council is made up of representatives from a variety of businesses and manufacturers from across the East and West Midlands, including Rolls-Royce, bulletproof vehicle manufacturer Babcock, and weapons manufacturer Rheinmetall.
The group met for the first time at the start of April to discuss how to deliver a regional plan, the Defence and Security Blueprint, and how to attract investment and create jobs in the defence sector across the counties.
The Mayor said: “We are a region that’s at the heart of the defence and security industry. I want the East Midlands to be at the forefront of it, not just because it’s the right thing for this country – to be doing our part to defend our country – but also because it is providing really high-quality jobs for our people in this region.
“So I’m really excited about the opportunities. There’s a really important part of our growth plan here in this region, and I know it will deliver great jobs for people who are really well paid and give them a great career in the defence and security industry.”
Last year, the Mayor signed an agreement with West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker, which set out industries on which both strategic authorities – the East Midlands Combined Authority and the West Midlands Combined Authority respectively – could focus together, that would be “good for both of us”.
The mayors’ first job was to establish the blueprint, which resulted in the recommendation that a council should be created.
Ms Ward revealed that the council’s first meeting discussed helping small- to medium-sized businesses transition into the defence sector.
Manufacturers may currently operate within, for example, the civil sector, but the defence sector could give them more “opportunities to do things”, the Mayor said.
“There’s a big jump between the civil and defence sectors because you have to be registered and approved by the MoD.
“So how can we help and support them to move into that sector? How can we make sure that the skills that we’re developing in this region are right for those industries?
“We want to work with businesses so they can tell us: what do they need? How do we support those courses? How do we make sure our skills sector is ready for creating that pipeline?”
The East Midlands recently received a huge boost to its defence sector, with Derby-based Rolls-Royce signing a £600m contract, courtesy of the National Wealth Fund, with the government’s nuclear department to deliver the UK’s first small modular reactors.
It’s after the company signed a contract worth £9bn in January 2025 to manufacture nuclear submarines for the Ministry of Defence.
The Mayor “absolutely” agreed that the formation of the new council was “particularly important at a time of such world unrest”.
She said: “We need to play our part in defending this country, and that’s never been more important than it is now in a really unstable world, where there’s conflict all over.
“We need to be ready and prepared. We want to see that investment taking place in the defence industry, and I want to see the result of that in jobs and growth here in this region.”
Other businesses on the council include security technology company Goldilock, submarine system manufacturer ESCO Maritime, and aircraft equipment manufacturer Safran.
Across the Midlands, there are around 1,000 companies operating in the defence sector or similar sectors, with around 50,000 people employed in jobs.
