MOD Police To Receive New Patrol Craft In £36m Contract

Cutting-edge patrol vessels are headed for the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Police and the Gibraltar Defence Police (GDP) as part of a £36m defence contract.

Liverpool-based boat provider Marine Specialised Technology has been offered the five-year deal, which will see 18 new vessels help to secure UK and territorial waters.

Of the total batch, 16 craft are to be offered to the MOD Police, which protects military assets and played a key role in the recent G7 summit in Cornwall, and two vessels will go to the GDP.

The 15m-long crafts will be able to transport three crew members and four passengers at speeds of 30 knots and are expected to help secure naval bases.

With a CCTV surveillance system, bullet-proof protection and two water jets built in, they will also be suited to the force's roles in threat detection and deterrence.

Defence minister Baroness Goldie said: "This £36 million investment allows our MOD Police and Gibraltar Defence Police forces to enhance the vital security service they provide to our military bases at home and overseas."

Round-the-clock waterborne patrol and policing will take place at HMNB Portsmouth, HMNB Devonport and HMNB Clyde and the Gibraltar Naval Dockyard.

The craft will enable both police forces to continue their work in all weather, securing cordoned areas and escorting military vessels, while their construction will also support and create jobs ashore.

"Designed and constructed by maritime experts in the UK, this contract reaffirms our commitment to invest in homegrown industry knowledge and support the protection and creation of skilled jobs," Baroness Goldie added. 

Construction has already begun and the first patrol craft is expected to be delivered in July 2022.

MOD Police Marine Operations Support lead, Inspector Brian McArdle, said the craft procurement is "part of an ongoing craft replacement project".

Cover image: MOD Police working with the Royal Navy (Picture: MOD).