Secretary hints support ships may be built in UK
DEFENCE Secretary Ben Wallace has given an update on the support ships that will sail alongside HMS Queen Elizabeth as part of the Royal Navy’s new aircraft carrier strike group.
It comes after an official report said the Ministry of Defence had “made slow progress developing three new support ships, which are crucial to Carrier Strike’s operation”.
Mr Wallace gave the clearest indication yet that the Royal Fleet Auxiliary supply ships will be made in Britain – and revealed he had urged officials to bring forward their procurement and building.
Plymouth Labour MP Luke Pollard has been spearheading calls for all Royal Navy ships to be made in Britain, including the contract to build the Fleet Solid Support vessels.
Conservative Minister for Defence Procurement, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, had also previously backed giving the contract to British shipbuilders.
However, responding to questions in the House of Commons this week, Mr Wallace said he “does not anticipate a capability gap at all”, because he does “not think it will take long to build” the three support ships.
It comes after a National Audit Office report said the Ministry of Defence “needs to focus on developing crucial supporting elements” for the Royal Navy’s new Carrier Strike capability “as well as develop a better understanding of how much it will cost in the future”.
“The MoD has made slow progress developing three new support ships, which are crucial to Carrier Strike’s operation,” said the NAO.
“It has only one ship able to resupply the carriers with the supplies they need, such as ammunition and food. The MoD has long been aware that this will restrict Carrier Strike, and the cancellation of a recent competition to build new supply ships – because of concerns over value for money – mean they will not be available until the late 2020s. The MoD will incur additional costs while it keeps the current ship in operation longer than intended.”
Labour MP for North Durham, Kevan Jones said: The RFA Fort Victoria will supply our carrier battle group until 2028. Most commentators say that that ship alone is not sufficient to support the carrier group.
“When will the Secretary of State bring forward the procurement of the fleet solid support ships? That would not only increase capability for the Royal Navy but be a big boost to UK plc, including the supply chain in the north-east of England, if that procurement were to be placed in UK yards.”
Mr Wallace replied: “The Right Honourable Member often campaigns for shipbuilding in the UK and he has heard my answers. First, I am keen that it gets under way as soon as possible; indeed, I have asked officials to bring it forward from the proposed date.
“The plus side is that such ships are not highly complex, so once the competition happens and it is placed, I do not think it will take long to build them.
“I therefore do not anticipate a capability gap at all. He is right that British shipbuilding and British yards produce some of the best ships in the world and we should support them as best as we can and ensure our navy gets some great Britishmade kit.”
The NAO report also revealed that HMS Queen Elizabeth will deploy on her maiden voyage without a fully operational defence system because its new Crowsnest airborne radar system is now 18 months late.
The NAO says: “Carrier Strike is planned to reach its ‘initial operating capability’ by December 2020. The MoD expects to meet this date, although it will not have the full level of radar capability that it expected at this point. The timetable for it to develop ‘full operating capability’ by 2023 remains tight.
“This will affect Carrier Strike’s capabilities for its first two years of operation,” said the NAO.
“The delay has been caused by a subcontractor, Thales, failing to meet its contractual commitments for developing equipment and not providing sufficient information on the project’s progress.
“Neither MoD nor its prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, were aware of these problems until it was too late, reflecting MoD’s ineffective oversight of its contract with Lockheed Martin.”