Labour’s biggest union backer is lobbying for a new order of Eurofighter Typhoons - Anthony Upton
Labour’s biggest union backer is lobbying Sir Keir Starmer to purchase British-made Typhoon fighters after ministers suggested they were set to buy American aircraft instead.
Sharon Graham, the general secretary of Unite, is understood to have urged the Prime Minister to intervene in an attempt to safeguard factory jobs in the North West.
Given the planned rise in defence spending, the union is campaigning for extra cash to be spent on a new order of Eurofighter Typhoons to replace around 49 aircraft that will soon be retired.
The replacements would be assembled at the BAE Systems plant in Warton, Lancashire, guaranteeing thousands of jobs at a time when work is beginning to dry up.
However, union bosses are furious after Maria Eagle, the defence procurement minister, appeared to suggest that the Government would opt to buy “more capable” fifth-generation F-35 stealth jets from the US instead.
Ms Graham has claimed that choosing the F-35 instead of the older Typhoon would be “an act of national self-harm” and fly in the face of ministerial pledges to use higher defence spending to support British factories and jobs.
The Unite chief has personally lobbied Sir Keir on the issue in recent weeks, The Telegraph understands.
Her warnings also come amid growing European concerns about relying on American-made equipment, with Washington viewed as a less reliable ally under Donald Trump.
Experts say the Pentagon can essentially ground the jets within weeks by withdrawing logistical or software support.
However, in a private letter to a Labour MP, Ms Eagle appeared to pour cold water on the idea of buying more Typhoons, suggesting it would have to be “traded against” other priorities “deemed necessary to support our aircraft carriers, meet our Nato commitments and generate UK fifth generation combat air capability”.
She said the Ministry of Defence (MoD) had “no plans” for further orders, adding: “New Typhoons are costly when compared against the more capable F-35, of which the next batch is already planned for purchase.”
On Monday, a Whitehall source claimed the letter had been misinterpreted and that ministers had made no final decisions on whether to buy more Typhoons or F-35s.
The Eurofighter Typhoon is made by a European consortium including BAE Systems, Airbus and Leonardo – with manufacturing spread across the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain.
A final assembly line also exists in each country, with the UK’s located at BAE’s plant in Warton.
When a partner nation orders jets or secures an export order, it then takes responsibility for assembly.
However, while other nations have committed to more orders, the last time the UK ordered any aircraft was in 2009. Instead, it has focused on securing exports to the likes of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
Qatar committed to buying more Typhoons in December but has yet to place a firm order, while the Saudis and the Turkish government are also in talks to buy more.
Buying US-made F-35 would be ‘inexplicable’
This lack of certain commitments has meant assembly work at Warton is running out – with the last two jets on order due to be put together for Qatar this year.
There are concerns that allowing the assembly line to run out of work risks the loss of vital skills that will be needed for the next-generation Tempest fighter jet being developed by Britain, Italy and Japan.
BAE is said to be considering sending staff for temporary secondments abroad to ensure they retain their skills.
In a letter to John Healey, the Defence Secretary, last week, Unite’s Ms Graham warned: “A decision not to purchase Typhoons would have a devastating impact on the UK.
“By making that choice your Government would be abandoning sovereignty, undermining the [Tempest] programme, deskilling our defence industry, putting thousands of UK jobs at risk and throwing away long-term economic benefits.
“To do this, in order to purchase a problematic US-made fighter plane, which will make RAF squadrons reliant on cooperation from the American government to function, would be inexplicable.”
The UK has ordered 48 F-35B jets from Lockheed Martin, of which 37 have been received so far. These are designed for use on the Royal Navy’s two aircraft carriers.
However, with the UK still ostensibly committed to purchasing 138 of the aircraft in total, speculation has been mounting over whether ministers will make further orders.
A BAE spokesman said: “We’re experienced at responding to the changing demands of the Typhoon programme to ensure we retain our specialist skills in the UK.
“Retaining our Typhoon final assembly facility in the longer term will require UK-led export orders or a further UK order, but the strong level of interest, commitment and investment in the aircraft from current and potential customers gives us confidence that Typhoon production in the UK will take us into the next decade and beyond.”
An MoD spokesman added: “The F-35 Lightning and the Typhoon are both advanced and cutting-edge fighter jets that are regularly deployed on operations around the world.
“Both fighter programmes are important to UK defence and make a substantial contribution to the economy and defence industry.
“We are leading Typhoon export campaigns to other nations and continue to invest in our fleet to ensure it remains at the cutting edge of global combat air capability.”
