National Shipbuilding Strategy

Earl of Minto Excerpts

Wednesday 15th July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Coaker (Lab)]

One of the things we are doing was announced yesterday by my colleague from the other place in Faslane: £26 billion of investment over the next 10 years into naval bases across the whole UK, so that we can improve the availability of our ships. We also need investment in our shipyards, which is taking place. That is one of the ways we are seeking to do this. We will improve availability, but it will take some time. On the Type 45 destroyers and their replacement, we are looking to the Navy of the future, which will have air defence and ways of dealing with the threats we face—but in a different way from simply replacing our existing warships.

[The Earl of Minto (Con)]

My Lords, Sir John Parker’s core message was absolutely clear: the British shipyards need a steady drum beat of orders, and the MoD must give a direction of travel. Shipbuilding now faces a yawning uncertainty, exacerbated by the defence investment plan. As has been mentioned, the Type 83 destroyers and the Type 32 frigates have been cancelled, leaving us susceptible to ballistic missile attack, and the Type 26 frigates currently under construction in Glasgow are being delayed. Now, all we have for the future is this vague concept of a common combat vessel, as yet undesigned, with no timelines at all. Why have the Government rejected the core proposition of the national shipbuilding strategy?

[Lord Coaker (Lab)]

We have not rejected the core conclusions of that report. The noble Earl is absolutely right that we need investment, and the Government have announced huge amounts of it. I cannot read them all out, but on pages 35 and 36 he will see sums of money, labelled against numerous types of ship, that will be invested in the shipyards. He is quite right that we need a steady drum beat of orders. As a proud Scotsman—with his Scottish noble friend, the noble Baroness, Lady Goldie, sitting behind him—he will no doubt be as pleased as I am that 13 ships are to be built on the Clyde over the next few years. He will also know that only yesterday we announced with the Netherlands eight amphibious transport ships, all to be built in the UK. It is not a bad start.