Asked by: Lord Kinnock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the willingness of a group of investors to purchase and refurbish HMS Illustrious so that it can become a museum in the UK, whether they will now suspend the sale and removal of the ship so that it is not broken up for scrap and instead, in keeping with the Government statement of September 2012, "preserved intact as a lasting tribute to service personnel who served" on HMS Illustrious, HMS Invincible and HMS Ark Royal.
Answered by Earl Howe - Shadow Deputy Leader of the House of Lords
Following an open competition a contract to recycle the vessel was awarded to Leyal Ship Recycling Ltd on 23 August 2016. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) subsequently received an outline proposal from a business consortium to purchase the former HMS ILLUSTRIOUS as a heritage asset. However, it has not been taken forward.
HMS ILLUSTRIOUS is now the property of Leyal Ship Recycling Ltd and to cancel the sale agreement at this late stage would result in significant financial cost to the MOD.