The Prime
Minister will today (Thursday 15 December) be in the Belfast
region for his first visit since taking office, to promote the UK
government’s investment in the prosperity and future of Northern
Ireland.
During a
visit over Thursday and Friday, the Prime Minister will meet with
businesses and communities in Northern Ireland, as well as
political leaders.
In November,
the UK Ministry of Defence announced British-led Team
Resolute as its preferred bidder for a £1.6bn contract
to develop and build the next generation of Royal Navy Solid
Support Ships, which will provide global logistics and
operational support to the Royal Navy, including the Maritime
Strike Group on deployment.
The Prime
Minister is expected to highlight the UK-wide nature of the
project and that it demonstrates how intertwined Northern
Ireland’s economy is with the rest of the
UK.
Ahead
of his arrival, Prime Minister said:
“Northern
Ireland - its people and its future - are rightly at the centre
of our shipbuilding ambitions.
“And
completing the next generation of our world class Royal Navy
Support Ships - to strengthen our security at sea and across the
globe - could not have found a better home than in Belfast, once
the biggest shipyard in the world, with its proud tradition of
skill and expertise.
“The
thousands of high value jobs and the skills that are gained from
delivering it now will help to lay the foundations of prosperity
for tomorrow.”
The proposals
from British-led Team Resolute places Belfast and Northern
Ireland at its heart by boosting the UK’s naval shipbuilding
capabilities for the future, including commitments
to:
- Create 1,200 UK shipyard jobs and an expected 800 further
jobs across the UK supply chain.
- Complete the entire final assembly for all three ships at
Harland & Wolff’s shipyard in Belfast
- Deliver 200 further education opportunities on graduate
placements and apprentice programmes, with Harland & Wolff’s
welding academy set to train 300 new UK welders for the
programme’s duration.
On Thursday
evening, the Prime Minister is also expected to host an
introductory meeting and informal discussions with the leaders of
the Executive Parties in the Northern Ireland Assembly - building
upon his recent attendance at the British Irish Council summit
(BIC) in Blackpool.
At the BIC
Summit, which was born from the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement,
the Prime Minister also hosted his inaugural Prime Minister and
Heads of Devolved Governments Council. However due to a lack of
formation of the Northern Ireland Executive, the First Minister
and Deputy First Minister positions were unable to be
represented. The summit discussed both the shared economic
challenges that people face, and the UK government response to
support households throughout the winter via direct
support.
Today’s
engagement follows a roundtable with party leaders hosted by the
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on Thursday morning, to
discuss solutions to return the Executive.
ENDS
Notes
to Editors:
Fleet
Solid Support
shipbuilding:
- Production is due to start in 2025 and all three support
ships are expected to be operational by 2032.
- The manufacture contract is due to be awarded by DE&S by
the first quarter of 2023, subject to completion of a successful
preferred bidder stage and final approvals.
Informal
discussions:
During
Thursday evening’s informal discussions, it is expected that the
Prime Minister will be joined by:
- Sir – DUP
- Michelle O’Neill – Sinn Féin
-
– Alliance
-
– UUP
-
– SDLP
