§ Mr. Gerald HowarthTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to make an announcement on the winner of the Watchkeeper competition; and for what reasons there has been a delay in the down select decision. [97191]
§ Mr. IngramI refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence's written statement on 7 February 2003,Official Report, columns 21–22WS. We expect to select a single successful contractor for the demonstration and 311W manufacture phase by mid-2004. Watchkeeper is a complex programme, involving the integration of aerial vehicles with a ground control segment and wider connectivity to future communication systems such as Bowman. Therefore it was important to ensure that those companies selected for the remainder of the assessment phase can deliver a solution that will meet our operational requirements, at price we can afford and within the required timescales. After initial assessment of the bids, we sought clarification on a range of issues from each of the four bidders in December 2002. The decision and subsequent announcement was then made as quickly as possible following receipt of each bidder's response to these additional points of clarification.