Government pledges £1.3 billion to build four new submarines for Royal Navy
Michael Fallon MP, Secretary of State for Defence, announced today that nearly £1.3 billion in funding has been pledged for the new submarines to replace the current Vanguard class as part of the Successor programme.
The first submarine will enter service in the early 2030s.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) will cover the initial manufacturing work, which starts next week.
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Hide AdConstruction of the submarines will take place at Portsmouth-based BAE Systems’ site in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria.
Mr Fallon said: ‘Britain’s ballistic missile submarines are the ultimate guarantee of our nation’s safety - we use them everyday to deter the most extreme threats.
‘We cannot know what new dangers we might face in the 2030s, 2040s and 2050s so we are acting now to replace them.’
The announcement was welcomed by defence giants BAE Systems,
Tony Johns, managing director of BAE Systems Submarines added: ‘This additional financial investment by the MoD is an expression of confidence in our ability to build these sophisticated vessels.’