§ Mr. Trotterasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will give an assurance that there will be no change of policy with regard to the refitting of Royal Fleet auxiliaries in civilian ship repair yards.
§ Mr. JuddThe policy is for Royal Fleet auxiliaries to be refitted in civilian yards only when the capacity is not available in naval dockyards. The Government will continue to take full account of all the wider industrial and employment implications.
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§ Mr. Trotterasked the Secretary of State for Defence what was the number of Royal Fleet auxiliaries refitted in civil shipyards in each of the last 10 years, together with the cost to public funds and the extent in each case to which these refits were on the Tyne.
§ Mr. JuddThe information is as follows:
Year Total number of refits Total cost £ thousands Number of refits on Tyne 1965 17 592 9 1966 18 997 8 1967 18 1,416 7 1968 22 2,015 12 1969 26 2,696 11 1970 29 2,605 11 1971 26 3,781 15 1972 32 3,887 9 1973 29 4,156 16 1974 (to date) 17 2,919 12