Written question asked by Julian Lewis (Conservative) on Wednesday, 23 November 2011, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 29 November 2011. It was answered by Peter Luff (Conservative) on Wednesday, 30 November 2011 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

HMS Ark Royal

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what defence-related restrictions he plans to apply when deciding whether or not to sell the Ark Royal to the Chinese government; what information his Department holds on the benefit derived by the Chinese navy from its reverse-engineering of a previously purchased aircraft carrier; what assessment his Department has made of the purposes to which the Chinese government intends to put the Ark Royal if its bid for the vessel is successful; and if he will make it his policy not to sell the Ark Royal to China.

Answer: [holding answer 29 November 2011]: There is no intention to sell HMS Ark Royal to the Chinese or any other Government. HMS Ark Royal is being disposed of by commercial tendering to the most appropriate bidder, either for use in a non-military capacity or for recycling. Work to evaluate a number of bids is under way but no decisions have yet been made.

Secondary information