Welsh defence jobs rise by 1,000 in a year
Mark Mansfield
The number of jobs in Wales supported by Ministry of Defence spending increased by 1,000 in the space of a year, according to new figures.
MOD estimates show the number rose from 3,900 in 2023/24 to 4,900 in 2024/25 – an increase of around 26%.
The growth included an additional 400 jobs supported in the weapons and ammunition sector, as the UK Government increases investment in domestic munitions production.
The figures cover employment supported by MOD expenditure rather than only people directly employed by the department.
Across the UK, the MOD estimates defence supports 462,000 jobs through the Armed Forces, industry and the Civil Service.
The latest total compares with a revised figure of 439,000 for 2023/24.
Previous statistics had put the 2023/24 figure at 463,000, but the MOD said this had been revised following the availability of better quality data.
Wales Office Minister Anna McMorrin said: “I am proud of Wales’s contribution to strengthening the UK’s national security.
“With 1,000 additional Welsh jobs supported by the MOD in 2024 to 2025, the UK Government is helping to grow the Welsh defence sector, building on our existing talent and expertise and bringing about good well-paid jobs of the future.”
The MOD said the increase in Welsh weapons and ammunition jobs reflected efforts to increase the UK’s ability to produce munitions domestically rather than rely on overseas suppliers.
Wales is home to a number of major defence industry sites, including operations run by General Dynamics, Airbus, Thales UK and BAE Systems.
BAE Systems operates its Glascoed munitions factory between Usk and Pontypool, where the company has recently submitted plans for a major expansion involving 18 new buildings and a 30-space car park.
The MOD says it spends more than £1 billion a year with industry in Wales, including £42 million with small and medium-sized businesses.
The military also has a number of bases in Wales, including Brecon and Cawdor barracks, RAF Valley and HMS Cambria.
‘Engine for growth’
Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard said: “These figures show that a rising defence budget is creating more good jobs across the UK.
“Defence is an engine for growth and our investments are driving reindustrialisation. As we increase our military readiness and capabilities we are generating good well-paid jobs nationwide.”
Across the UK, the number of direct and indirect jobs supported in the defence industry increased from a revised 248,000 in 2023/24 to 274,000 in 2024/25.
The UK Government says further growth is expected under its Defence Investment Plan, which commits £298 billion to defence over the next four years.
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And how many jobs have been created in the last year directed at our wellbeing, as families and households, communities and country? In our own times, let alone the past, we have seen the failure of armed force to achieve any ends which do not also bring about massive suffering to civilian populations, especially women and children. The nature of the ‘peace’ that such warfare leaves in their wake is bitterness and resentment, fuel for future conflict, reprisals and severed communities. Not to forget the damage to infrastructure and its contribution to global warming. It should be a matter of… Read more »
And will tie Cymru increasingly to the Union