Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish his plans to procure more support and protection vessels from UK yards.

On 16 March 2021, the Shipbuilding Tsar announced a refresh of the National Shipbuilding Strategy. This will outline the Government's future plans for shipbuilding programmes and how we will set the conditions for a globally successful, innovative and sustainable shipbuilding enterprise.

Our new Defence and Security Industrial Strategy has already set out how we are moving away from global competition by default to a more flexible and nuanced approach. This will allow us to consider all the relevant factors and decide on the best strategy for the procurement of any given capability. This approach will enable us to take into account our national security requirements and the potential benefits for growth and prosperity across the UK in our procurement decisions.