£3.7bn frigates deal secures Clyde jobs

SHIPBUILDING on the Clyde has been handed a multi-billion-pound boost after a contract was signed to build the first three ships in a new fleet of Navy frigates.

Work on the Type 26 global combat ships will start at BAE Systems’ yards in Glasgow this summer. The £3.7billion deal will secure 1,700 jobs in Scotland and a further 1,700 in the supply chain across the UK, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.

Eight ships are to be built, with the contract for the second batch of five ships to be negotiated in the early 2020s.

Plans to build the new frigates were set out in the UK Government’s 2015 strategic defence and security review, although the project has been scaled back from earlier proposals to construct 13 ships. The vessels will specialise in anti-submarine warfare and work with the Navy’s Trident nuclear deterrent and the new aircraft carriers, the first of which, HMS Queen Elizabeth, launched from Rosyth, Fife, last week.

The fleet will eventually replace the current Type 23 frigates and each ship will carry a crew of 118.

The MoD is said to be exploring export opportunities where there is ‘strong interest from international customers’ in the Type 23, described as ‘the most advanced anti-submarine warship in the world’.

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said the Type 26 programme would secure the long-term future of the Scottish shipbuilding industry. He added: ‘The Type 26 Frigate is a cutting-edge warship, combining the expertise of the British shipbuilding industry with the excellence of the Royal Navy. We will cut steel on the first ship later this month – a hugely significant milestone that delivers on our commitment to maintain our global naval power.

‘These ships will be a force to be reckoned with, there to protect our powerful new carriers and helping keep British interests safe across the world.

‘The Type 26 programme will bring vast economic benefits to Scotland and the wider UK. The contract is structured to ensure value for taxpayers’ money and, importantly, now designed to protect them from extra bills from project overrun.

‘The investment will secure hundreds of skilled jobs at BAE Systems on the Clyde for the next 20 years.’

Ross Murdoch, GMB national officer and interim chairman of shipbuilding unions body CSEU, said: ‘We look forward to future confirmation on the other five ships. This is tremendous news for GMB members in Scotland.’

Ian Waddell of trade union Unite said: ‘The contract is testament to the skills of the BAE Systems workforce on the Clyde and we urge the Government to sign on the dotted line for the next five ships.’

‘Testament to the skills of the workforce’