PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
The National Flagship (6 June 2021)

That this House notes the Government’s decision to commission a £200 million National Flagship to replace HMY Britannia, which was decommissioned in 1997; understands that this has caused considerable public consternation at a time when many people are experiencing immense economic hardship; recognises, however, that the project has the potential to create much-needed work and investment in British shipbuilding; calls on the Government to make a cast-iron guarantee to design and build the flagship in the UK; welcomes the recent announcement that Cammell Laird shipyard in Birkenhead is willing and able to deliver the project on-time and on-budget; recognises that the construction of the National Flagship at said shipyard would secure and expand the number of jobs and range of training opportunities available to local people, and create economic growth in one of the country’s most left-behind towns; recommends that Cammell Laird be chosen to construct the flagship; and further recognises that the commissioning of this vessel is no substitute for a long-term and well-funded shipbuilding strategy that secures the viability of the industry for generations to come and establishes the UK as a world-leader in green maritime technology.

Sponsored by:
Mick Whitley (Labour)