§ Viscount MerseyMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.
§ The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the anticipated cost of Type 23 frigates, and when these ships might be superseded by the NATO frigate mentioned on page 19 of the 1986 Statement of Defence Estimates (Cmnd. 9763—I).
§ The Minister of State for Defence Procurement (Lord Trefgarne)My Lords, the estimated average cost of the first eight Type 23 frigates is £115 million each (at 1985–86 prices). The NFR is aimed at the 1990s, but the project is still at a very early stage, and along with its NATO partners, the United Kingdom is considering whether to move forwards to the project definition phase.
§ Viscount MerseyMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for that reply. It is certainly encouraging to hear that the Type 23 frigate is estimated to cost only £115 million as against the Type 22, costing £150 million. But surely we should strive for a common frigate design across the whole breadth of NATO, bearing in mind particularly that our defence expenditure is no longer increasing in real terms.
§ Lord TrefgarneMy Lords, yes; that is a desirable objective from a number of standpoints, but we shall need to be certain that the important criteria are met. I have in mind, for example, that the cost of the vessel is comparable with what a national project would produce.