THE UK has agreed to provide Australia with nuclear submarines in the first deal of its kind ever — worth billions to British industry.
Ministers are said to be open “in principle” to the idea of building conventionally-armed nuke-powered subs, like Britain’s Astute Class for them which cost nearly £2billion each.
The landmark agreement will help the Aussies get a high-tech sub as soon as possible as part of the AUKUS defence pact to help face down the growing threat of China.
Insiders say ministers would be open to building a sub for another ally — like Australia — in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, securing billions of pounds and guaranteeing thousands of jobs for a generation.
The AUKUS pact hopes to get a new type of submarine in operation for Australia by the mid-2040s.
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But this deal could see a British-built sub, using existing designs, down under as soon as possible.
However, the Government has ruled out lending a Royal Navy sub to Canberra.
It is part of a broader “Indo-Pacific tilt” aimed at beefing up our security links in the region.
PM Rishi Sunak is set to unveil the plan alongside more details on the AUKUS deal when he visits Washington DC next month.
Australia pulled out of a £65billion deal with France in favour of building nuclear submarines through the AUKUS pact — sparking a major diplomatic row in 2021.
It was hailed as a post-Brexit boost, which would have been far more complicated if Britain had still been in the bloc.
But it will still take some time before Australia takes delivery of the subs.
Insiders say it can take 15 years for crews to gain the necessary experience to command a nuclear sub.
But the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy have already started training together on the British nuclear fleet.
Australia would also need to build a submarine dock technologically capable of storing a nuke sub for months at a time.
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A Royal Navy source said: “This is going to take some time.
“It’s the equivalent to a family man with a Ford Mondeo being handed the keys to a Formula 1 car.”
No decision has yet been made on the type of submarine that would be provided to Canberra.
Staff in Barrow are building the new Dreadnaught class for the next 15 years but, given the cash being pumped into AUKUS, could ramp up a parallel production line.
The Government said: “Royal Navy submarines are not being lent to Australia. Australia requested the UK’s support in acquiring nuclear- powered submarines. As close partners, we are meeting that request.
"While talks are ongoing, we will not pre-judge the outcome of the current scoping period, which is being used to understand Australia’s capability requirement.
“We share a long history of co-operation with Australia on security and defence, including on submarines.”
