皇冠体育app

Defence Ministers Tobias Ellwood and Stuart Andrew toured Scotland this week, visiting some of the UK鈥檚 most important military bases that have had billions of pounds of investment in recent months.

Minister for Defence People & Veterans, Tobias Ellwood, visited RAF Lossiemouth where he saw progress being made on the 拢132 million invested in the site ahead of the arrival of the 9 new P-8A Poseidon aircraft. 皇冠体育app new Lossiemouth facility will be completed by 2020, to coincide with initial operating capability of the Poseidon aircraft being available in the UK.

皇冠体育appse state-of-the-art submarine hunters will help keep Scotland and the rest of the UK safe and secure from intensifying threats, protecting the new aircraft carrier and nuclear deterrent. 皇冠体育app aircraft will work alongside eight cutting-edge new Type 26 warfare frigates, which also have their roots firmly in Scotland.

Minister for Defence Procurement Stuart Andrew met with BAE business leaders as he visited BAE Systems鈥� yard in Govan, which is producing the frigates.

皇冠体育app Type 26 frigate programme will sustain 1,700 BAE Systems jobs in Scotland and safeguard 4,000 jobs across the wider UK supply chain until 2035.

Stuart Andrew鈥檚 visit comes just after a year since the first steel was cut on HMS Glasgow, marking the beginning on the build of Britain鈥檚 first Type 26 frigates.

皇冠体育app importance of this programme was also emphasised when Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson visited the site alongside his Australian counterpart Marise Payne last month.

Gavin Williamson outlined how Australia鈥檚 decision to choose BAE Systems to build nine British warships could be worth 拢20 billion hailed as the biggest Naval ship deal for a decade.

Tobias Ellwood and Stuart Andrew also visited HMNB Clyde that has recently had 拢1.3 billion invested in the infrastructure that will see it become the home of all the Royal Navy鈥檚 submarines by 2020.

皇冠体育app Ministers capped off their visit in Scotland at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. This year the Tattoo will celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the RAF with the 鈥楽ky鈥檚 the limit鈥� theme.

Defence Minister Stuart Andrew said:

From the Scottish shipyards building our cutting-edge new Type 26 Royal Navy fleet, to our brave servicemen and women tirelessly working to protect our national security, Scotland is crucial to defence.

We invest 拢1.6 billion every year in the Scottish economy, supporting thousands of jobs and hundreds of businesses, as our industry partners pioneer world-leading technology to ensure our forces remain a step ahead of our adversaries.

This is my first visit to Scotland as Minister of Defence Procurement and I am extremely proud of the work going on in every corner of the nation to ensure our country remains safe in a climate of intensifying threats.

皇冠体育app visit comes at an important time for defence鈥檚 footprint in Scotland. Under the Better Defence Estate strategy, the department is reducing the Scottish estate to 14 key sites.

Reducing the number of estates will allow for greater investment in the key sites such as HMNB Clyde, RAF Lossiemouth, as well as building the new radar facility Saxa Vord in Shetland.
It will also benefit local economies as the Department will work closely with Local Authorities and the Scottish Government to make the best use of the released land.