Nice words Mr Burnham, now we need action: Back Portsmouth with £2.4bn defence satellite
The News - backed by Portsmouth City Council - writes an open letter to the Prime Minister calling on him to award Skynet 6 contract to Airbus
In a visit to Portsmouth Naval Base this summer, Prime Minister Andy Burnham made a bold promise to the city: ‘I want people to know here that I will fully support all of our communities. There is a big reindustrialisation opportunity here, particularly for defence in Portsmouth. People should expect to see plenty of me.”
That is why today The News is calling on Mr Burnham to back up his words with action - by awarding a multi-billion pound defence contract to workers in Portsmouth.
Skynet is Britain's most secure military communications system, which 17 NATO allies rely on. The Government is faced with a decision on whether the new £2.4bn Skynet 6 satellite system is built by Airbus in the city or by American-owned Lockheed Martin.
In an open letter from The News today we make it clear to Mr Burnham - and his Defence Secretary Wes Streeting - that the decision is simple.
If he gets it wrong, 70 years of UK design authority and sovereign satellite capability walks out of the city, leaving Britain dependent on foreign blueprints at a time when relationships between NATO and the United States are strained.
And turning his back on Airbus flies in the face of promises made to back jobs by buying British and supporting economic opportunities in every postcode across the country.
.jpeg?trim=0,0,0,0&width=640&quality=65)
Today’s call has been backed by Portsmouth City Council leader Steve Pitt. In adding his name to the letter, Cllr Pitt said: ‘Keeping highly skilled jobs in Portsmouth must be the priority for this government. Airbus are world leaders and this contract is vitally important to ensure they can continue to lead the way in satellite technology. I urge the government to put this issue to bed quickly. Awarding the contract to an American company instead is unthinkable.’
Get access to trustworthy local news with fewer ads - sign up for a digital subscription to The News
Portsmouth has been at the heart of how Skynet and many other military satellites have been delivered for the UK and globally. From its premises in Portsmouth, Airbus Defence & Space has made the city home to world-class design, development, production and assembly facilities for satellites made for space agencies, militaries and governments around the world. Including the Skynet satellites.
But this could all change if the government backs Lockheed Martin.
Today’s open letter includes information Mr Burnham should already be acutely aware of. Earlier this year the Unite union - one of the Labour party’s biggest backers - made a similar rallying cry. And Portsmouth North MP Amanda Martin has also been supporting Airbus.
As reported in The News, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said it would be a “massive mistake” to go for Lockheed Martin over Airbus, adding: “Andy Burnham has said he is backing Britain and British jobs. The Skynet WSS contract could be the first test of this. These satellites have been designed and built in Britain for the last 20 years ensuring hundreds of skilled jobs in Stevenage and Portsmouth, as well as thousands more in the supply chain.
“Handing the British space industry over to the Americans in the first days of the new government would be a massive mistake, industrially and politically.”
The decision to award the contract has been delayed for several months.