Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the reply by Baroness Goldie on 20 June (HL Deb col 100), whether the Ministry of Defence will raise with the Treasury the case for having a multi-year rolling programme of warship orders.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Royal Navy (RN) has ambitious plans to ensure its fleet remains modern and capable of dealing with evolving threats. Regular discussions take place between the RN, the Ministry of Defence and His Majesty's Treasury to ensure this is funded in a way that provides value for money for taxpayers and the best capability for the RN.
The National Shipbuilding Strategy Refresh, published on 10 March 2022, sets out the ambition for the pipeline of more than 150 new naval and civil vessels for the UK Government and Devolved Administrations over the next 30 years.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government, what were the expected service lives of (1) RFA Wave Ruler, and (2) RFA Wave Knight, when they were introduced.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The WAVE class ships were built with a design service life of 25 years. Material condition of all platforms are carefully monitored and, if required, service life can be adjusted based on service need and appropriate evidence.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the annual cost of keeping RFA Wave Ruler and RFA Wave Knight in reserve status.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The annual cost for the safe keeping and upkeep of Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) WAVE RULER and RFA WAVE KNIGHT is circa £4 million in total. These costs include care and protection, dehumidification and continuation of mandatory maintenance to remain in class.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are their estimated sale prices for RFA Wave Ruler and RFA Wave Knight.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
On current plans, RFA WAVE RULER and RFA WAVE KNIGHT are not for sale. Therefore, no assessment has been made regarding a potential sales price.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the current status of RFA Fort Victoria.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Royal Fleet Auxiliary FORT VICTORIA is not in planned maintenance and is therefore available.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect the first fleet solid support ship to replace RFA Fort Victoria.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The approved In Service Date for the first Fleet Solid Support ship is 2031. The Royal Navy expects to manage RFA Fort Victoria's operational status as necessary to maintain solid support ship availability during the capability transition period.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether RAF fast jet pilots are now being trained in Italy.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Royal Air Force have signed a technical arrangement with the Italian Air Force to send a small number of RAF trainee pilots to the International Flight Training School in Italy, commencing in July 2023.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government what ships the Royal Navy currently have on order.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Royal Navy currently has the following vessels on order :
Class | On Order/Contract |
Type 26 Frigate | 8 |
Type 31 Frigate | 5 |
Fleet Solid Support | 3 |
Autonomous Minehunting – Mission System | 3 |
Autonomous Minehunting – Logistic Support Vessel | 1 |
Multi Role Ocean Surveillance Ship (Seabed Warfare) | 1 |
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they can ascertain whether oil sold by India to the UK and other countries has not been refined from Russian oil, thereby circumventing sanctions.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The import, acquisition, supply and delivery of Russian oil and oil products into the UK has been banned since 5 December 2022. The ban uses the well-established non-preferential rules of origin under which products are regarded as originating from a country if there has been substantial, and economically justified, processing in that jurisdiction. Processing is regarded as substantial if it results in the manufacture of a new product such as the refining of crude oil into fuels.
In the three months to February 2023, since the ban came into effect, there has been no marked change in the volume of imports from India compared to the year before.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the percentage of Russian oil as a proportion of all Indian oil imports (1) prior to the invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, and (2) at present.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
According to the International Energy Agency, Russian oil exports to India totalled 2.1 million barrels a day in March 2023, an increase of 1.7 million barrels a day compared to March 2022.
More precise data on international oil flows is observed by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero but is subject to commercial licensing agreements and cannot be published by the Department.