Anger as support ships contract is opened up
MP SAYS VESSELS SHOULD BE BUILT IN UK
NEW Royal Navy fleet support ships must be built in the UK, an MP has insisted.
Ministers have opened a deal to build three support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary to international competition.
The ships will be designed to replenish Royal Navy warships at sea with ammunition, food and other supplies.
The new ships will replace the current dry stores ships, which were built in the mid-1970s.
But Stephen Hepburn, Labour MP for Jarrow, urged Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson to ensure they were built in the UK.
During a question time session in the House of Commons, Mr Hepburn said: “I acknowledge Ministers’ work to retain knowledge and skill in the ranks of our defence forces; it is just a pity that they do not apply the same effort to our defence industry, instead of giving a billion-pound taxpayers’ order to improve skills and jobs in Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.”
Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood MP said in reply: “The art of war is changing, and we need to diversify, which means recruiting a wider range of skill sets.
“Not everybody can come up through the ranks with all the capabilities that we need. We need to be clever at inviting people in at a higher rank, which is part of our enterprise approach to bringing in skill sets from civilian street at a much higher level.”
Research by the Labour Party and trade unions has found that the fleet support ships’ contract could create 6,700 jobs and boost the UK’s economy by over £1bn. They have said that if overseas shipyards win the contract, Britain will also lose out on vital income and jobs for British yards and ports.
Labour have also launched a petition to get the Government to reverse the decision for international competition and to build them in Britain.
Mr Hepburn said: “It is shocking how the Tories are refusing to back British industry and workers.
“They are allowing the new Royal Navy frigates to be built in Britain, but because these support ships will be classed as ‘non-warships,’ they are opening up the possibility of them being built elsewhere.
“This is despite the fact that they will be carrying munitions and will be armed with weapon systems for self-defence.
“It simply doesn’t make sense. They should be supporting British shipyards, not those of other countries.”