Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of the steel cut for Batch 2 Type 31 frigates is sourced from (a) the UK and (b) overseas.

The five Type 31 frigates are being procured in a single batch. Thin plate, which forms approximately 85 per cent (about 15,500 tonnes) of the steel required for the Type 31 ships, is not manufactured in the UK to the required specification. Since changing its steel supplier, the prime contractor, Babcock, has been able to source some UK-produced section and bulb bar steel through its stockists, which represents about four per cent (about 677 tonnes) of the total steel requirement.

Steel for our major defence programmes is generally sourced by our prime contractors from a range of UK and international suppliers and is procured in accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines. We encourage the sourcing of UK steel wherever it is technically and commercially feasible.