Keir Starmer you must buy Lancashire-made Typhoon's for the RAF, not Trump's F35s - Unite Union
Lancashire-made Typhoons must be at the forefront of increased defence spending, according to Unite the Union.
Unite defence workers lobbied Parliament on Wednesday, demanding that the Government’s decision to increase defence spending was backed up by action. In order to protect British jobs and protect national security, they say the Government must by UK-made defence equipment rather than US-made bombers.
In his statement to parliament this week, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “We will translate defence spending into British growth, British jobs, British skills and British innovation”. Unite is committed to ensuring that pledge is fully delivered.
Unite is pushing the case for the government to make the decision to buy BAE System’s Typhoons to replace the ageing RAF Fleet and not US F35s. They say the failure to “do the right thing” would result in a weakened defence industry and an erosion of critical skills.
Six thousand people are directly employed on the Typhoon programme at BAE Systems. A third of every aircraft is manufactured at the production facility in Samlesbury, and components including the jet’s front fuselage, spine tank and tail section, and engineering and flight testing of Typhoon takes place in Warton.
Speaking at the lobby, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Whilst we welcome the increase in defence spending to 2.5 per cent and the PM’s promise around investment, growth, jobs and skills, this needs to be matched with action. There is an immediate decision to be made on the replacement of aging RAF fighter jets with British made Typhoon’s. This decision needs to made in the UK’s favour.
“Any thought of wooing Donald Trump by selling our defence jobs abroad and replacing the RAF fleet with US made F35s will be resisted and would be an act of self-harm. We simply can’t find ourselves in a situation where Trump wakes up in a bad mood and locks us out of using our own fighter jets.
“Every other partner country involved with the Typhoon, is buying more Typhoons for their own defence. How can we expect other countries to buy British Typhoons if we are not buying them ourselves? The Typhoon is a world class fighter jet, its range and air defences are better than the F35. Right now RAF Typhoons are defending NATO borders. The government has made the hard decision, the money Is available, now is the time to back Britian.”
Unite is also highlighting the need for the government to sign the contract for the new medium-lift army and RAF helicopter that is to be produced by Leonardo in Taunton.