A troubled £5.5bn programme that is already six years late in building the British army’s new Ajax fighting vehicle will not be delivered until the end of the decade.
Labour accused the government of failing British taxpayers and troops after the Ministry of Defence confirmed that payments towards vehicles would resume after ministers concluded the programme was “turning a corner”.
Originally intended to enter service in 2017, the programme has been repeatedly delayed, with problems including noise and vibration issues that have injured soldiers testing the vehicles.
After halting payments to General Dynamics Land Systems UK (GDLS-UK) more than two years ago, the MoD said on Monday it would hand over £480m this month to the arms company. It said full operating capability was expected between October 2028 and September 2029, when the army has trained and converted forces to the vehicle.
The defence procurement minister, Alex Chalk, said in a written statement to MPs that payments would resume with an instalment of about half of what has been held back since December 2020.
“Restarting payments to General Dynamics reflects the fact that the programme continues to return to a firm footing and supports the delivery of the schedule to deliver operational capability,” he added.
He said further payments for 589 of the fighting vehicles would be made against a “new schedule and its milestones”.
“The Ajax programme is turning a corner, but this does not remove the need for the department to identify and learn lessons,” he added.
However, John Healey, the shadow defence secretary, accused the Conservatives of spending billions more on a project that is already six years late and will not fully deliver until the end of this decade.
“The defence secretary has made Ajax central to the future of the army and the UK’s ability to fulfil our Nato obligations, yet after 13 years and £4bn investment the army has still not got a single deployable vehicle,” he added.
“It is clear the government can’t deliver value for public money or the equipment our forces need to fight. Ministers are failing British taxpayers and British troops.”
The public spending watchdog said earlier this month that the army had been left with ageing armoured vehicles that were expensive to maintain as a result of delays which meant the MoD had received only 26 vehicles as of December 2021 after paying £3.2bn. The National Audit Office said the MoD and GDLS-UK’s approach was flawed from the start and they did not fully understand the scale or complexity of the Ajax programme.
Action to overcome problems now includes modifications to better isolate the human body through measures including cushioning and the introduction of a layered approach to ear protection that includes inner ear pieces so troops can communicate and outer ear protection.
Five hundred and eighty-nine Ajax vehicles, assembled predominantly at General Dynamics in Merthyr Tydfil, are due to be delivered to the British army. The whole programme remains within its originally approved budget level, according to the MoD.
