Royal Navy submarine HMS ANSON arrived in Western Australia February 23, a major milestone in the AUKUS partnership which supports security and stability in the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic and delivers good jobs and growth in the UK, Australia and the US.
AUKUS is the trilateral security partnership between Australia, the UK and the United States to build new attack submarines and develop advanced military technology that will help protect all three nations, drive growth and support security in a new era of threat.
In a major milestone for the AUKUS programme, Australian personnel will work alongside UK engineers to conduct maintenance of HMS ANSON, an Astute-class submarine, for the first time. The visit will help them build the skills and knowledge they need to maintain the conventionally armed, nuclear-powered AUKUS submarine fleet in the future.
SSN-AUKUS will be the most powerful attack submarines ever operated by the Royal Navy, creating more than 7,000 new jobs across the UK supply chain including in Barrow, Cardiff and Glasgow, and backing 21,000 jobs at peak production.
The UK has invested £6 billion since summer 2024 into critical infrastructure at Barrow and Derby that will realise the ability to construct a new AUKUS submarine every 18 months.
The partnership is making defence an engine for growth. The benefits are already being felt with more than 3,000 new jobs delivered across key UK nuclear sites since this government came into office in July 2024.
An additional 4,400 construction roles are expected to be created over the coming years.
This government is stepping up on defence, delivering the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War – 2.6% of GDP from 2027 – to ensure that Britain and our allies are safe.
The AUKUS partnership is a huge part of the UK’s NATO-first commitment to lead on innovation and delivery in the trans-Atlantic alliance.
AUKUS recognises the indivisibility of Euro-Atlantic and Indo-Pacific economies and security and will protect and defend our allies’ shared interests in the Indo-Pacific and beyond.