Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the importance of the (a) Merchant Navy and (b) Royal Fleet Auxiliary to the security of the UK.

Penny Mordaunt

The Ministry of Defence together with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Home Office and the Department for Transport, published the UK National Strategy for Maritime Security (NSMS) in May 2014. This cross-Government paper encompasses all aspects of the UK’s maritime domain, including the Merchant Navy whose cooperation, as part of the Red Ensign Group, is important to maintaining our national security and prosperity.

The Royal Fleet Auxiliary plays a key role in maritime security either by directly supporting Royal Navy ships on operations or, occasionally, conducting operations in their own right. Her Majesty’s Government places great importance on all maritime capabilities, with the NSMS setting out the whole-of-Government approach required to secure the seas and oceans that Britain depends on.