Royal Navy: HMS Albion and Bulwark could be sold for £20m in "militarily illiterate" decision, report says

As reported in the Mail on Sunday, HMS Bulwark and HMS Albion may be sold for just £20m for both ships. The Albion-class landing platform docks were officially retired from the Royal Navy fleet in November by defence secretary John Healey alongside other assets considered not to be cost-effective.

The Strategic Defence Review is currently ongoing with the aim of overhauling the UK’s armed forces by allocating funds to different areas and highlighting the major threats which face the nation. Sources told the Mail on Sunday that the Ministry of Defence is asking for £20m for the vessels, despite millions of pounds being spent on them over the past 14 years.

Minister for defence procurement, Maria Eagle, confirmed that £132.7m was spent on refitting HMS Bulwark and Albion since 2010. A further refit to HMS Bulwark - scheduled between 2022 and 2025 - was estimated to cost roughly £72.1m. This final valuation was being reviewed, due to the ship being retired before the work was completed.

Shadow armed forces minister Mark Francois told the national publication that idea of disposing of both ships was described as “militarily illiterate” during a defence committee meeting in parliament a few years ago. He added: “Given how much the MoD has spent on refitting them in recent years, to suddenly flog them off at a knock-down price, is 'financially illiterate' as well.”

Another source told the Mail on Sunday that the decision was “short sighted”, stating that Britain could be left with a “third world navy” compared to other countries. The MoD did not comment on the speculation.

Who is going to buy HMS Albion and HMS Bulwark?

Rumours circulated previously that Brazil would buy HMS Bulwark, with reports in South America stating the Brazilian Navy Admiralty and the Ministry of Defence have begun sales discussions.

Mr Healey said during the retirement announcement that both former flagships were superficially kept on the books despite no imminent plans for them to return to the fleet. He added that top military officials gave their blessing for the ships - alongside HMS Northumberland and other assets - to be decommissioned.

Lieutenant General Sir Robert Magowan KCB CBE said at a defence select committee meeting on December 17 that those retirements needed to be made, but uncomfortable issues remained. He added: “In terms of the six retirements, the secretary of state outlined to the house the implications of that. Three of those involved vessels that were no longer seaworthy, so we were spending money against capabilities that were never going to be used operationally. There was a pretty strong case with regards to those three classes of ship.”

Later in the meeting, he said: “There are areas where there is operational risk we are carrying, which is uncomfortable, but that is why we’re pre-empting that through some early investment.”