Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the retirement of the RAF Nimrod fleet, for what reason the UK has not replaced its maritime surveillance capability; and what assessment he has made of (a) the disadvantages of the lack of UK maritime patrol aircraft, (b) when such capability could be restored, and (c) the requirement to restore the capability.
In the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, the Government confirmed that it would close the Maritime Patrol Aircraft capability gap with the procurement of nine Boeing P-8A Poseidon aircraft. The UK's first aircraft was delivered to the Royal Air Force in October 2019 and we declared an initial operating capability on 1 April 2020.