Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many ships are currently in service with the Royal Navy; and how many of those are (1) in maintenance, (2) on extended life, and (3) scheduled for decommissioning.

To avoid compromising operational security, the Ministry of Defence does not routinely disclose elements of the Fleet's long-term schedule and readiness profiles.

The Royal Navy continues to meet its operational objectives and to work closely with the Government to ensure our maritime environment remains safe amid a changing threat environment.

Currently the Royal Navy has 52 Surface Ships in service, at varying states of Operational availability and readiness. The RFA has 9. It is important to see availability as a constant cycle as ships move through maintenance, training, and deployment and recovery phases, with around 50% of the fleet at high readiness or above at any one time.