Britain will build up to 12 nuclear-powered attack submarines and invest £15billion in its warhead programme, the Prime Minister will announce on Tuesday. The Government is expected to accept 62 recommendations as part of the strategic defence review, including significant investment in the UK warhead programme this parliament and maintaining the existing stockpile.
Building the submarines as part of the Aukus partnership with the US and Australia will support 30,000 highly skilled UK jobs into the 2030s as well as 30,000 apprenticeships and 14,000 graduate roles, claims the Ministry of Defence.
They will replace the UK’s seven Astute class submarines, armed with conventional weapons, and will be in operation from the late 2030s, joining the four Trident submarines that carry the nation’s at-sea nuclear deterrent.
Defence Secretary John Healey said: “Our outstanding submariners patrol 24/7 to keep us and our allies safe but we know that threats are increasing and we must act decisively to face down Russian aggression. With new state-of-the-art submarines patrolling international waters and our own nuclear warhead programme on British shores, we are making Britain secure at home and strong abroad.”
The investment will back the Government’s commitments to maintain the continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent, build a new fleet of Dreadnought submarines and deliver all future upgrades. From the late 2030s, the fleet of SSN-Aukus conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines will replace seven astute-class attack submarines Britain is due to start operating.
The Government will also commit to getting the armed forces to a stage where theyare ready to fight a war, boosting weapons and equipment stockpiles and ensuring there is capacity to scale up production. It also plans to buy up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons, set up a new cyber command and invest £1billion in digital capabilities.
An extra £1.5billion to repair and renew military housing has already been announced.
