MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Concern with future of RN submarines Devonport Dockyard

Sub at HM Naval Base Devonport

British Members of Parliament from Devon are calling for an urgent meeting with the new owners of Devonport Dockyard to discuss the site's future. Engineering group Babcock International is buying the naval dockyard in Plymouth in a £350m deal.

Devonport maintains, upgrades and fuels Royal Navy submarines, and with 4,800 staff is a major regional employer. South Devon MP Gary Streeter said they had concerns about Devonport's workload. "The jury is still out". Babcock maintains the Rosyth and Faslane submarine bases in Scotland and is buying Devonport Management Limited (DML) from a consortium which includes Kellogg Brown & Root, Balfour Beatty and Weir Group. The group said the "combined strength of Babcock and DML will yield significant strategic and financial benefits to the Ministry of Defence". Mr Streeter is seeking to hold talks with Babcock together with Plymouth Labor MPs Alison Seabeck and Linda Gilroy. Mrs Seabeck, Labor MP for Plymouth Devonport, said: "We need to find out exactly what the company is proposing", adding that "potentially it could be good for DML. It could bring more security over a longer period". She said the dockyard had been going through a period of "peaks and troughs" in output and she would be pressing for the new owners to ensure there was an on-going skills base at the dockyard. "Babock does fully understand this need because of their background and shipping experience". DML supports nuclear submarines and surface vessels for the Royal Navy and has controlled the Plymouth dockyard since 1997. Meantime in related news the Royal Navy reported that the Prince of Wales this week toured HM Naval Base Devonport, his first in his new role as Commodore-in-Chief of the Royal Naval Command, Plymouth. The visit included a Royal Navy warship, disaster training, newly-built accommodation, an alcohol free bar and a submarine refit centre run by contractor Devonport Management Limited.