KEIR Starmer welcomed a decrepit-looking nuclear submarine back to Scotland as it surfaced after what is reported to be a record-breaking time at sea, amid growing concerns about the safety of the Trident programme.
The Prime Minister posted a video of him and Defence Secretary John Healey at Faslane welcoming the crew back to land – after they were said to have spent 204 days at sea.
That amounts to nearly seven months on patrol which, according to the specialist news site Navy Lookout, would be a record length of time to have been at sea.
The site questioned whether the crew would have been adequately equipped to spend such a long time underwater, given that a previous shorter patrol saw submariners on near-starvation rations.
The Sun reported last year that crew on a Vanguard-class submarine which was on patrol for more than six months had been reduced to hunting for leftover food, divvying up sweets and crisps – with medics fearing “serious loss of life” as a result of hunger-induced fatigue.
Restocking at sea would mean coming up for air, according to Navy Lookout, which would defeat the aim of nuclear patrols operating “undetected”.
There are growing concerns about the state of Britain’s nuclear fleet, which insiders have said is falling apart at the seams.
Dominic Cummings, former top aide to Boris Johnson, has said that the Trident programme is “f***ed” and claimed that the extent of its pressure on the wider military budget was kept highly classified to avoid MPs thinking about it”.
Efforts are underway to build new nuclear submarines, which will be the new Dreadnought-class of submarines replacing the four Vanguard-class vessels which have been operating since 1992.
After months of silent service, Royal Navy submariners running a nuclear deterrent patrol have returned to UK waters. It was an honour to join them on board, and to meet their loved ones. Thank you for your service to our country — welcome home. pic.twitter.com/UoJyTQSYrG
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) March 20, 2025
The old vessels were only intended to be in service for 25 years, meaning the newest of the lot should have retired last year and the oldest in 2018.
The new Dreadnought-class submarines are intended to enter service in the “early 2030s”, according to the Ministry of Defence and will have a lifespan of “at least 30 years”.
There are also concerns about whether the Vanguard-class submarines are even capable of firing nuclear missiles – after two high-profile failures in early 2024.
The Ministry of Defence was approached for comment.
