MPs warn of security risk if nuclear submarines are delayed

Published on Wednesday 18 March 2009 21:39

BRITAIN'S ability to maintain its Trident nuclear deterrent is "open to doubt", MPs warned today amid fears that the new, replacement class of missile-carrying submarines will not be completed on time.

The Commons Public Accounts Committee said that the first of the new submarines must be in service by 2024 if the Royal Navy is to maintain its ability to keep one vessel at sea at all times.

However, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) was trying to cram the design and construction of the submarines – a process that normally takes 18 years – into just 17, despite its long history of delays to major equipment projects.

At the same time, the MoD had to take crucial decisions about the design of the missile compartment before the Americans had finalised a life-extension programme for the submarines' US-built D5 Trident missiles.

Despite assurances given by George Bush, the former US president, to then prime minister Tony Blair that "close co-ordination" between the two countries would be maintained, the committee warned there was a "significant risk" that the updated missiles could be "incompatible" with the new submarines.

"Any form of dislocation or delay in this collaboration process would have serious ramifications for the department's ability to support a nuclear deterrent over the long-run," the committee said.

The 2024 completion date for first of the new submarines is crucial as by that time two of the existing four Vanguard class vessels will have been taken out of service.

The navy needs at least three nuclear missile submarines if it is to maintain its cycle of continuous-at-sea patrols which are the basis of the UK deterrent.

In the meantime, the MoD has just six months to decide on a nuclear reactor for the vessels.

The choice lies between selecting an existing model – which will need updating – or a new design which risks delay.