Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the UK's continued sovereign ability to manufacture complete naval vessels.

The 2017 National Shipbuilding Strategy sets out the Ministry of Defence's commitment to supporting the UK shipbuilding industry and protecting our assured capability to design, build, repair and integrate naval ships. The Type 26 Anti-Submarine Warfare frigate programme on the Clyde and the Type 31 general purpose frigate programme at Rosyth are a manifest example of our determination to maintain the UK’s ability to deliver warships.

Further to this, through the Defence and Security Industrial Strategy review we will identify how we can enhance our strategic approach to ensure we have competitive, innovative and world-class defence and security industries that drive investment and prosperity across the Union.