Floating Royal Navy museum HMS Caroline could be moved from Belfast to Portsmouth

HMS Caroline, a light cruiser that took part in the Battle of Jutland, has been docked in Belfast since 1924 and had operated as a floating museum before closing due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Now the National Museum of the Royal Navy may be forced to intervene and move its closed tourist attraction, according Dr Tim Schadla-Hall, the chairman of the HMS Caroline Preservation Society, who expressed his concerns to the Belfast Telegraph earlier this week.

Lockdown has seen an underwater hull survey and maintenance work delayed as staff have been placed on furlough, according to Dr Schadla-Hall.

In a statement, Northern Ireland economy minister Diane Dodds said: ‘I decided to extend the current period of closure of the attraction, caused by the Covid-19 crisis, until December 31.

‘My department agreed with NMRN that they would provide the necessary maintenance services for the ship during the period of temporary closure and that we would meet agreed costs.

‘We will endeavour to keep this period of temporary closure to a minimum and will use it to examine in detail all options and costs for the future of the attraction, taking into account the need to ensure best value for the use of public money.

‘I remain committed to exploring all options to enable this important heritage attraction to remain in Belfast.’

The situation the historic warship finds itself in is a ‘debacle’, according to Steve Aiken, the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party.

SEE ALSO: Royal Navy involved in Solent training exercise as migrant crisis continues

He said: ‘That the minister is shutting down the ship at the same time as her own department attempts to maintain and bolster our Northern Ireland tourism and visitor attractions simply beggars belief.

‘Next year will probably be marked by HMS Caroline being towed away to Portsmouth.’

The National Museum of the Royal Navy was approached for comment.

Looking for the latest Royal Navy updates from Portsmouth? Join our new Royal Navy news Facebook group to keep up to date.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

Thank you for reading this story. The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on our advertisers and thus our revenues.

The News is more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription to support our journalism. You can subscribe here for unlimited access to Portsmouth news and information online.

Every subscription helps us continue providing trusted, local journalism and campaign on your behalf for our city.