Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what outstanding refit work remained on HMS Bulwark at the time of HMS Albion’s decommissioning in July 2023; and whether this work was completed before the decision to decommission Bulwark was taken.

The decision to decommission both HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark was announced in November 2024. As of that date, a considerable amount of refit work was still outstanding to materially prepare HMS Bulwark for her return to sea. In the period from 2022 to 2024, a total of £72.1 million had been spent on refitting HMS Bulwark.

Neither HMS Albion nor HMS Bulwark were due to go to sea ahead of their out-of-service dates in 2033 and 2034. Their disposal shows that we are delivering for defence by divesting ourselves of old capabilities to make way for the future. These ships were effectively mothballed by the previous Government.