MacShane Tell Ministers Royal Navy Must Use British Steel in Ships Flying the Queen's Flag

In a strong exchange in the House of Commons, Rotherham MP, Denis MacShane, said that Royal Navy vessels should be built with steel made in Britain. MacShane told Ministers that there was alarm at reports that some future Royal Navy vessels might be built outside the UK.

“Can I be assured that the steel of our new generation of royal naval ships will be built in Britain, that we will avoid the procurement boom and bust policies of the Conservative party, and that we will have a sustained programme of building royal naval vessels which keeps the bulk of the work in the United Kingdom? If the vessels are to sail under Her Majesty's flag, they should be built on Her Majesty's territory,” MacShane told MPs.

Later MacShane said that he would table further questions on this point. “I am strongly for value for money and anti-protectionist but government procurement can play a powerful part in keeping British steel and other vital manufacturing industries globally competitive.”

The Rotherham MP has also held talks with MPs representing shipyard constituencies. “The important thing is to ensure a smooth, planned flow of work to avoid the feast or famine, boom or bust order books we saw in the 1980s and 1990s. The government is committed to renewing armed services equipment and we must ensure procurement works with and for Britain’s industrial workforce. I welcome Mr Ingrams’ statement to the Commons and I urge the industry and its unions speaking for the workforce to be vigilant and maintain pressure so that the tax-payer gets value for money and British steel and manufacturing workers get their share of the work.”

The full exchange in the Commons is below.

Mr. Denis MacShane (Rotherham) (Lab): If he will make a statement on his policy on procurement of royal naval vessels. [53945]

The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Mr. Adam Ingram): The purpose of the defence industrial strategy is to ensure that the capability requirements of the armed forces can be met now and in the future. As such, it recognises the importance of sustaining the high-end, value-added, systems engineering skills to manage the integration of complex ships and their combat systems, which are critical for national security and sovereignty.

Mr. MacShane: I welcome the Minister's statement. His heart is in the right place, but steelworkers in my constituency are concerned at reports that some in Whitehall want substantially to offshore the building of Her Majesty's ships. Can I be assured that the steel of our new generation of royal naval ships will be built in Britain, that we will avoid the procurement boom and bust policies of the Conservative party, and that we will have a sustained programme of building royal naval vessels which keeps the bulk of the work in the United Kingdom? If the vessels are to sail under Her Majesty's flag, they should be built on Her Majesty's territory.

Mr. Ingram: As my right hon. Friend knows—he is very knowledgeable about all this—the defence industrial strategy is the first serious attempt to ensure that our approach smoothes out the peaks and troughs of what is unquestionably a major shipbuilding programme. When we get to 2016, that high, sustained effort will go into decline. We are seeking to ensure not only that we have continuity in shipbuilding capacity and, hopefully, alongside that, in steel-making capacity, but that we retain the high-grade skills that are required to put sophisticated systems in place. All those things will have to be judged on the basis of what is best for defence and how industry can best meet those needs. Industry, the work force and the Ministry of Defence strongly support that new strategy. We will have to see how it develops as the years roll by.