Unite: MoD must "Buy British" in fast-jet procurement

Unite the union has today called on the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to choose Britain when decisions are made on new fast-jet procurement.

Unite understands a decision is imminent from government on the purchasing of new aircraft for the RAF with a choice between the British-made Typhoon and the American-made F-35(A).

Unite is calling on the government to invest in a new tranche of Typhoon fighter jets to ensure the UK maintains its industrial skills base ready for the 6th generation Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP).

Today's call also comes shortly after a report last week from the defence select committee that highlighted the importance of Britain's industrial capability and skills base for Tempest/GCAP to be a success.

 With full-scale production of Tempest not expected to begin until the 2030s, retaining final assembly capability and the existing Typhoon BAE Systems workforce of 6,500 will be a significant challenge and will be made more difficult by the dwindling of the UK Typhoon production line. 

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "The UK possess some of the finest engineers and technicians of fast jets anywhere in the world. With a decision on fast-jet procurement imminent, the government needs to take decisive action to retain these workers and ensure that we are in a position to get more skilled jobs from Tempest/ GCAP.

"We have been saying for some time that The MoD needs to place a further order for Typhoon aircraft, which will fulfil a military requirement, maintain industrial capacity, and preserve jobs and skills.

 Labour must now step up to the plate and make the clear unequivocal investment decisions that workers and their employers desperately need.”

A UK order of 24 F35's would only secure 2-3 months of work in Britain for 2,000 people whereas 24 Typhoons would secure 26,000 jobs for 2 years for workers in BAE Systems, Rolls Royce, Leonardo and the UK supply chain.

Unite defence and aerospace national officer Rhys McCarthy said: "These are highly skilled and well-paid jobs in areas of the UK where this sort of work is hard to come by. In an increasingly unstable world it would be reckless not to ensure that our own domestic defence industry is properly supported and capable of meeting the security challenges we face.

A purchase of Typhoons not only demonstrates faith and investment in British jobs and growth for the UK economy, but also displays confidence in a defence product that has a significant export market. 

Rhys McCarthy added: "The government has been clear that the British economy needs growth and that our defence industry is crucial to this. Selling the Typhoon overseas can contribute to our GDP but we cannot expect foreign governments to buy our fast jets if our own government won't. It's clear that they need to make a decision to ‘make and buy British".