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Defence Procurement

I am sorry, but I will not take any more interventions. I understand that the UK may not have the capabilities to meet all our defence needs, but the defence industrial strategy adopts a tone of pessimism and defeatism. Sourcing on an international basis is healthy and will help to deliver value of money to the taxpayer, but the DIS appears to limit itself to exploring the existing capabilities rather than outlining what support and mechanisms can be provided to develop new ones. Our country's economic strategy should be built firmly on skills, science, research and development, and innovation, yet the DIS includes little innovation and more conservatism. I have visited the United States twice this year. On both occasions, we lobbied on the hill for the advancing of technology transfer. We had a difficult job in convincing some Congressmen that this did not mean the transfer of jobs to the UK but a partnership that would benefit the armed forces of both countries. I welcome the new treaty that has been signed and the scrutiny in the House. We must ensure that the US understands the importance of this matter to us as well as the benefit to it. I hope that Rosyth will be a significant beneficiary of the announcement on aircraft carriers made just before the recess, which was well received in Fife. Rosyth will play an important role in the final commissioning of these massive structures, which will be the biggest and most complex construction projects ever on the Forth, even compared with the iconic Forth bridge. We are looking forward to the massive increase in employment in Fife. Babcock is expected to increase its employee numbers from about 1,200 to 1,800 and other companies will also seek to increase their numbers locally. Many issues remain unresolved, some of which I wish to raise today. First, how do we ensure that local people—this point was made earlier by the hon. Member for Glasgow, South-West (Mr. Davidson)—are given the skills fully to exploit the opportunities ahead, so that the effects of this massive project are felt long after the carriers sail down the Forth? I fear that instead of training local people to take these jobs now, companies will simply rely on transitory employees from elsewhere who will move to the next job when this one is complete. I am in favour of the free movement of people—I am a liberal—and regard it as healthy rather than as a threat, but I am interested in ensuring that Fife retains a skill base that could be developed and in Fifers being able to take advantage of the opportunities. We are talking not just about a couple of big ships that need to be built, but about a long-term development opportunity for Fife. What are the Government doing to ensure that companies are fully engaged with local colleges and enterprise companies so that longer-term skills development is planned? Secondly, I have heard the Minister responsible for defence procurement talk about the possibility of other countries awarding more contracts to UK yards if we get the carriers built on time and within budget. What engagement has there been? After the construction of the carriers, the Type 45 destroyers, the military afloat reach and sustainability project—the feast—there will be a famine. If we simply rely on the MOD orders to fill the books, we will struggle. What plans are there to fill the order books for the yards so that it is not just a boom-and-bust situation for Scottish yards and others? What is the longer-term strategy? Thirdly, has the relationship with France been developed in respect of the carriers? We have not heard much about this since the announcement made in July. If so, what will the nature of that relationship be? The hon. Member for Plymouth, Sutton (Linda Gilroy) mentioned the Babcock takeover of Devonport Management Ltd. Having been opponents over the Trident contract, it is good that Rosyth and Devonport are coming together in a constructive partnership. I am sure that they will work better together and will also be a counterbalance to BAE Systems in the shipbuilding and refit industry. I wish to return to a point made earlier about the Public Accounts Committee. It found that the MOD's 20 biggest weapons projects are £2.6 billion over budget and a total of 36 years behind schedule—that is six times longer than the second world war. Its report voices concerns about the massive scale of the cost overruns and delays and the MOD's failure to hold staff to account when things go wrong. The report is obviously damning and gives little confidence in the MOD's ability to manage these large projects. How has the Minister responded to this report, and what measures have he and the Department put in place to get things right?