On 17 May Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson and French Minister of the Armed Forces Mme Florence Parly held the first Defence Ministerial Council since the announcement of a permanent and regular forum for the discussion of UK-France defence cooperation in January 2018.

During the meeting a bespoke technical arrangement which will oversee the exchange of test pilots between the two nations was signed. This agreement formalises an exchange enabling French pilots to train at the UK Empire Test Pilots’ School based at MOD Boscombe Down, and British pilots to train at the French Test Pilots’ School, Ecole du Personnel Navigant d’Essais et de Reception on the Istres Le Tube airbase.