Jeremy Hunt is poised to scrap Boris Johnson ’s “vanity” yacht in his spending cuts.
The Chancellor plans to end the ex-PM’s dream for a £250million national flagship for which the Ministry of Defence has spent nearly £2.5m on staff costs and consultants.
Former Labour defence minister Kevan Jones tackled Defence Secretary Ben Wallace over whether the vessel would now go ahead.
Mr Wallace told him: “The MoD has not assumed any liability for costs incurred by bidders in the design competition. And no design or manufacturing contracts have been placed.”
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Mr Jones said: “This complete waste of taxpayer money has obviously been sunk. And quite right, too.
“The Navy never wanted it in the first place and It was just one big Boris Johnson vanity project.” The only way the project may still stay afloat is if Mr Johnson makes an extraordinary comeback as Prime Minister.
Mr Johnson’s ambition was for it to “promote the best of British” by hosting diplomatic meetings when abroad and as a showcase for trade fairs.
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But Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the money would be better spent on more police.
And Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg described the ship as “a glorious distraction” as Brits struggled with soaring living costs. He added: “I don’t think it’s in the realms of reality to have a royal yacht when you’re facing a cost-of-living problem.”
Britannia is now open to tourists in Edinburgh. The MoD said of the replacement boat: “An announcement will be made in due course.”