Royal Navy: Cost of defence projects for navy, RAF and British Army soared by £9bn in a single year

Analysis of the Government Major Projects Portfolio has casted doubt over whether a swathe of military projects will be delivered on time and to budget. A study by the Liberal Democrats of the most recent Infrastructure and Projects Authority annual report found showed costs rising drastically.

As reported in the Daily Mirror, lifetime costs for current defence projects have climbed from £63bn in 2020-21 to £72bn in 2021-22. This comes as prime minister Rishi Sunak is flying to Lithuania tomorrow for a crucial Nato summit – discussing the alliance’s support for Ukraine.

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Nato statistics revealed last week shows the UK is one of just 11 aligned countries, out of 31, to meet spending targets. The target is to spend at least two per cent GDP on defence.

Britain currently spends 2.07 per cent of GDP on the Armed Forces, according to Nato data. The infrastructure and Projects Authority uses a traffic light system to determine whether a project is likely to be completed on time and to budget.

Only three out of the 52 Ministry of Defence (MoD) projects were given the highest possible green grade, with 33 given an amber status and nine handed the red status.

Some projects which were given the lowest rating include the Core Production Capability programme, which aims to deliver reactor cores to Royal Navy submarines, and the crucial upgrades for HM Naval Base Clyde – home to the force’s nuclear-armed Vanguard submarine fleet.

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Richard Foord, a defence spokesman for the Liberal Democrats who served as a Major in the British Army, told the Daily Mirror: ‘The Prime Minister needs to urgently get a grip on defence procurement. The Government’s own report makes for sobering reading; these delays are leading to ballooning costs.

‘Getting procurement right is necessary at the best of times but is vital at a time when there is a war on the European Continent.’ Mr Foord added that the UK should ‘properly support Ukraine’, but problems with defence procurement are being ‘properly tackled’.

An MoD spokesman said: ‘Any claim there are frequent delays or overspend on current Defence projects is inaccurate.’ He added the IPA report shows most of the projects are within budget and on time.