Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they give to the working hours of Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel when calculating pay for those staff; and what assessment they have made of whether Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel remuneration meets minimum hourly wage levels.

I refer the noble Lady to the reply given by my hon. Friend, the Minister for Veterans and People (Louise Sandher-Jones), in the House of Commons on 3 March 2026 to the hon. Member for Lewes (James MacCleary) in response to Question 115299.

James MacCleary

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has assessed the adequacy of National Minimum Wage compliance for Royal Fleet Auxiliary roles.115299

Answer

Louise Sandher-Jones

Royal Fleet Auxillary salaries are benchmarked against comparable roles across the wider maritime industry to ensure competitiveness and reflect market conditions. Constructive pay discussions with the Maritime Trade Unions are ongoing, focused on supporting retention and delivering a modern, growing organisation capable of meeting current and future defence tasking.