Britain embarrassed on world stage again as UK cuts staff hours at key naval base
Reports that hours were cut in a bid to reduce expenditure have raised further questions about the UK response to the war in Iran.
Britain has been accused of sending the wrong signal to allies and adversaries alike after staff hours were cut at a key Royal Navy base despite rising global tensions. The UK’s slow response to a drone attack on RAF Akrotiri on Sunday has been widely criticised, with a Type 45 destroyer being deployed to the region to bolster air defences on the island not setting sail before the beginning of next week.
HMS Dragon is expected to take a further week to arrive in the Mediterranean, meaning that it is likely not to be on mission within two weeks of the Iranian-backed attack. The vessel is currently preparing for deployment at a naval base in Portsmouth, having undergone maintenance prior to receiving orders. However, it has since emerged that Government efforts to slash costs by reducing staffing at the base could have contributed to the delay.
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According to Politico, Prospect union, which represents tug boat workers and engineers at the ship’s base in Portsmouth, argued that the reduction in hours meant it had taken longer to mobilize the necessary workforce and prepare the HMS Dragon for deployment.
Mike Clancy, general secretary of Prospect, said: “Our members are stepping up to help, but such a vital service shouldn’t be dependent on goodwill from staff. Out-of-hours support should be locked into the contract.
“This contract has failed its first real encounter with a serious crisis, and must be urgently reviewed and rectified.”
The delay in deployment has angered Cypriot officials, with other nations likely to deliver assets into the region in response much earlier than Britain.
Kyriacos Kouros, the Cypriot high commissioner to the UK, said the deployment of HMS Dragon was welcome but noted it would take “more than a week” to arrive.
Asked if he thought the UK had acted with sufficient urgency to protect people living in and around the bases, he told Sky News: “Already we have the presence of Greek forces on the island. Two frigates arrived, four aircraft arrived, all of them with abilities to combat drones.
“The French are coming. So… the least we expect is the Britons to also be present since, as I said, we are not only defending Cypriots on the island.”
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Italy, the Netherlands and Spain are also reportedly sending naval assets to protect Cyprus.
The private contractor responsible said that its service requests have been fulfilled and that work is proceeding “at pace” to get HMS Dragon ready to deploy.
“All requests that have been made to Serco to support the preparation of the ship have been fulfilled,” an MoD spokesman told POLITICO.
Portsmouth News reported that the MoD sought to make a £250 million saving from its previous £1.2 billion agreement with the contractor.
Serco’s current deal is worth £1 billion across three contracts.
A Serco spokesperson said: “HMS Dragon is being prepared to sail with the full support of our dedicated teams in Portsmouth.
“Serco has fulfilled every task requested by the Royal Navy on time and to the agreed standard. Any suggestion that the working patterns of Serco employees have impacted HMS Dragon’s ability to sail is completely untrue.”
