The once-mighty Royal Navy has become a shadow of its former self under Labour, according to an investigation.

Dozens of warships and submarines have fallen victim to crippling spending cuts – leaving Britain’s naval defences at critically low levels.

In 1997, the Royal Navy had 137 vessels. Today, it boasts only 99.

Figures reveal that 29 ‘floating fortresses’ have been sold to foreign navies keen to bolster their own defences, with the Government pocketing �0million from the deals.

Opposition parties and naval commanders last night criticised the loss of so many vessels.

Surgeon Rear Admiral Ralph Curr, the UK National Defence Association’s south-west president, said: ‘The Navy has got down to a critical mass, the bare minimum.

‘You can’t expect the Government to make more cuts and still expect the Navy to conduct the same number of operations at the same intensity.

‘The Navy’s ships are like fire extinguishers: You never know when you are going to need them and it’s too late to order them after a fire has started.

Tory defence spokesman Liam Fox said: ‘Britain is a maritime nation and 92 per cent of our trade goes by sea, so an effective Navy should be a priority for the defence of the UK.

‘Now is not the time to go sea-blind. Yet Labour has cut the surface fleet to the bone.’

Parliamentary written answers revealed that ships have been sold to the Philippines, Canada, Greece, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Bangladesh, Romania, Chile, Estonia and Brazil since 1997.

Last November, minesweepers HMS Cottesmore and HMS Dulverton were given to Lithuania for free.

The Ministry of Defence refused to say why no money changed hands, insisting the arrangement was ‘commercially sensitive’.

The sales of HMS London and HMS Coventry to Romania are particularly controversial because it was revealed that of the �6million paid for the Type 22 frigates, the British taxpayer received only �0,000.

The remainder went to British arms giant BAE Systems to refurbish them. Canada paid �7million for four long-range hunter-killer submarines in 1998, while the Type 22 frigate HMS Sheffield was sold to Chile in 2003 for �million.

The sale price of a ship is set according to its age, how much refurbishment it needs, the value of the materials it is made of and equipment on board.

Read the article on Mail on Sunday

Labour sinks Navy: Warships sold off to foreign powers in deals worth �0m

The once-mighty Royal Navy has become a shadow of its former self under Labour, according to an investigation.

Dozens of warships and submarines have fallen victim to crippling spending cuts – leaving Britain’s naval defences at critically low levels.

In 1997, the Royal Navy had 137 vessels. Today, it boasts only 99.

Figures reveal that 29 ‘floating fortresses’ have been sold to foreign navies keen to bolster their own defences, with the Government pocketing �0million from the deals.

Opposition parties and naval commanders last night criticised the loss of so many vessels.

Surgeon Rear Admiral Ralph Curr, the UK National Defence Association’s south-west president, said: ‘The Navy has got down to a critical mass, the bare minimum.

‘You can’t expect the Government to make more cuts and still expect the Navy to conduct the same number of operations at the same intensity.

‘The Navy’s ships are like fire extinguishers: You never know when you are going to need them and it’s too late to order them after a fire has started.

Tory defence spokesman Liam Fox said: ‘Britain is a maritime nation and 92 per cent of our trade goes by sea, so an effective Navy should be a priority for the defence of the UK.

‘Now is not the time to go sea-blind. Yet Labour has cut the surface fleet to the bone.’

Parliamentary written answers revealed that ships have been sold to the Philippines, Canada, Greece, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Bangladesh, Romania, Chile, Estonia and Brazil since 1997.

Last November, minesweepers HMS Cottesmore and HMS Dulverton were given to Lithuania for free.

The Ministry of Defence refused to say why no money changed hands, insisting the arrangement was ‘commercially sensitive’.

The sales of HMS London and HMS Coventry to Romania are particularly controversial because it was revealed that of the �6million paid for the Type 22 frigates, the British taxpayer received only �0,000.

The remainder went to British arms giant BAE Systems to refurbish them. Canada paid �7million for four long-range hunter-killer submarines in 1998, while the Type 22 frigate HMS Sheffield was sold to Chile in 2003 for �million.

The sale price of a ship is set according to its age, how much refurbishment it needs, the value of the materials it is made of and equipment on board.

Read the article on Mail on Sunday

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