Written question asked by Colin Breed (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 6 March 2001, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 13 March 2001. It was answered by Lord Spellar (Labour) on Tuesday, 13 March 2001 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Ministry of Defence

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to store redundant nuclear submarines in the River Tamar prior to disposal.

Answer: Mr. Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to store redundant nuclear submarines in the River Tamar prior to disposal. [152860] Mr. Spellar: We have no plans to store decommissioned nuclear submarines in the River Tamar prior to disposal. Such submarines have been stored safely afloat in the Dockyard at Devonport since 1991. It is the Ministry of Defence's aim to have a land storage facility in place before 2012, although it is likely that the move from afloat to land storage will need to be staged over a period of several years. Meanwhile, the current arrangement for storage afloat at Devonport will continue.

Secondary information