Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of work to construct the Fleet Solid Support ships will take place in the UK.

The majority of the shipbuild will take place in the UK.

The manufacture contract for the Fleet Solid Support ships has not yet been signed and so supply chain sub-contracts have also not yet been signed. It is therefore too early to be able to provide a precise estimate of the proportion of the supply chain that will be UK-based. However, the majority of contract spend will occur in the UK and it is expected that around 800 jobs will be sustained in the UK supply-chain for equipment, design and support services.