Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 55
Fourth Report - Defence in Scotland: military shipbuilding
Published 27 Jan 2023
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Defence in Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
During our inquiry the Prime Minister announced the decision that the second batch of Type 26 anti-submarine warfare frigates would be built by BAE in Glasgow.90 This means that, in addition to the three Type 26 ships already being built, five more vessels will be built on the Clyde. The MOD claims the contract will support 1,700 jobs in Govan and Scotstoun, and that as a result of the contract BAE will invest £1.2 billion in the UK supply chain, supporting a further 2,300 jobs. This investment includes the construction of a new covered shipbuilding hall at Govan, which will allow two frigates to be built simultaneously under cover. Prior to the announcement of the decision, Sir Simon Lister told us progress was already being made towards construction because of the Government’s strong commitment to Batch 2; he said the hall would be operational in two years’ time and described it as a “very important fillip for our workforce.”91 In addition to the work generated for BAE directly, the MOD says £248 million of work in the manufacturing supply chain will be in Scotland, compared with £749 million in England.92 Vice Admiral Paul Marshall gave two specific examples of parts of the ships that would be built by the Scottish supply chain: the stabilisers—to be built in Dunfermline—and the mission bay doors—to be built in Edinburgh.93
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, Fourth Report - Defence in Scotland: military shipbuilding (HC 1096), 27 January 2023
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 6 April 2023 (deadline 27 March 2023).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The MOD disagrees with the Committee's first conclusion and its conclusion on a potential Scottish workstream gap, while welcoming recognition of export success and the National Shipbuilding Office's Edinburgh presence and setting out its position on the pipeline, skills and SMEs.
- On the Fleet Solid Support contract, the MOD says the decision to award it to Team Resolute "did not prioritise short-term savings" and followed "a fair and open competition". It says it does not disclose details of losing bids, so it cannot say why the Team UK bid was non-compliant.
- The MOD "does not agree" that the award creates a potential gap in the workstream for the Scottish warship industry. It cites Type 31 construction continuing until 2028 and Type 26 construction "expected to continue into the mid-2030s".
- On the pipeline, the MOD says it is "subject to change" as it spans 30 years, but the National Shipbuilding Office "has committed to updating the shipbuilding pipeline at each multi-year Spending Review". For Type 32 frigates, the procurement route is "yet to be determined".
- On annual Type 26 updates to Parliament, the MOD "will consider its request". On skills, the UK Shipbuilding Skills Taskforce "intends to publish a report of recommended actions in autumn 2023", and its Chair "would be pleased to meet with the Committee" afterwards.