Have these new ships been bought properly? Are they on time and within budget?
The Government was accused last night (25 Jan 05) of trying to keep secret an £84m
cash lifeline to a troubled shipyard which sits near the constituencies of
Prime Minister Tony Blair and other senior Cabinet ministers.
The timing, coming just months before the
expected election in May, was described by the Tories as "suspicious".
The Ministry of Defence said the money was made available to Swan Hunter so
it could complete a £160m contract for two Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels
after the yard found it needed more money to complete the job. The MoD also
allowed Swan Hunter to deliver the first ship one year later than planned
in 2006.
An MoD spokesman said: "They [Swan Hunter] under-estimated the engineering
requirement in the design and construction of the ships. We agreed an £84m
contract amendment for the revised programme to fill the technical
deficiencies of the company to take forward the project." He added that the
extra money provided the best value for money for taxpayers.
Jaap Kroese, the yard's owner,
blamed the need for the cash call on late design changes by the MoD. "The
MoD changed the design. The original offer was for entirely different
ships." This was denied by the MoD.
Gerald Howarth, the Conservatives' defence procurement spokesman,
said: "The
Government has won Olympic gold for manipulating conditions for elections
and it is the duty of the Opposition to be suspicious and I am suspicious."
The news was greeted with frustration by defence industry sources. One
said: "Because of the region where Swan Hunter is based, some would argue
that the move has been made for political reasons.