Mr. MartinTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has yet reached a decision on the future of the fleet maintenance and repair organisation, Portsmouth.
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§ Mr. Archie HamiltonAs part of our continuing efforts to find the most cost-effective arrangements for the support of the Fleet, we propose to cease all ship refits at the Fleet Maintenance and Repair Organisation (FMRO) in Portsmouth. Such work will in future be undertaken in the Royal dockyards and industry. The FMRO will continue to undertake repair, maintenance and enhancement work for ships based at Portsmouth, and unprogrammed work in respect of defects in operational ships. We expect that some 400 civilian staff would be affected by this proposal. Every effort will be made to find alternative employment in the Ministry of Defence or other Government Departments, but some redundancies may be unavoidable. Where that is the case, staff will be eligible for compensation under the relevant pension scheme and for counselling on alternative employment prospects.
This proposal is the subject of consultation with the trade unions and final decisions will be taken in the light of any representations made by interested parties. A copy of the consultative document has been placed in the Library of the House.
We also plan to market test the FMRO. This will he the subject of separate consultation with the trade unions.