Shipbuilding: Use of British Steel for Royal Navy

Lord Hannan of Kingsclere Excerpts

Tuesday 30th November 2021 Lords Chamber

[Lord Hannan of Kingsclere (Con)]

My Lords, a patriotic Government should want our armed services to have the best and aptest steel in the most economical way, so as to free up the rest of their budget for more kit and more materiel. Will my noble friend the Minister confirm that whether it is sourced from the UK, Germany, Turkey or the Netherlands, we will always endeavour to ensure that our service men and women get the best possible equipment?

[Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)]

My noble friend makes a very good point. In October 2020 the ONS published a report on UK steel procurement across government. It showed that the reported proportion of steel procured within the UK for public projects was 77%, up from 40% in the previous year.