Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on the procurement of new tonnage as part of the Strategic Sealift contract (a) up to and (b) beyond the end of the existing contract with Foreland Shipping Limited in 2024.
As part of the current PFI agreement, there is no contractual requirement for FSL to provide the Ministry of Defence (MOD) with any sealift capacity over and above the four Point Class vessels. Any additional MOD requirements would need to be met in the short term through commercial charters. Procurement of tonnage from 2024 onwards will be subject to the conditions of any future contract, the terms of which are yet to be determined.