The UK government is contemplating how to speed up construction on the delayed warship—possibly by calling on Babcock to adopt a “wartime footing,” including extended and weekend shifts.

The UK’s Royal Navy won’t receive its first Type 31 frigate, the future HMS Venturer, until 2028—more than two years behind its original delivery date.

The warship, which is being constructed by British shipbuilder Babcock at the Rosyth shipyard in Scotland, was rolled out of the assembly hall in May 2025 and launched a month later. However, the ship is now facing delays due to a range of factors, including inflation, rising energy and labor costs, lingering supply chain disruption from the pandemic and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, and construction issues related to its fixed-price contract.

Even when HMS Venturer is finally delivered, it will still need to undergo sea trials, safety certifications, and crew training—meaning that the warship won’t be ready to be deployed until the early 2030s at the earliest!

How Could the UK Speed Up Warship Construction?

Discussions are underway to speed up the production of five planned Type 31 frigates. Ministers in the UK have even called upon industry to “shift toward a wartime footing,” The Times reported. “Babcock employees work only eight hours a day after their overtime shifts were cut to save money as part of government efforts to plug a £28 billion ($37.5 billion) hole in funding. They are not asked to work weekends.”

The shipbuilder is now exploring options to recruit additional workers, notably apprentices, and could resume overtime.

Plans to speed up production are being pushed forward by those in the Conservative Party’s “shadow government,” the opposition that tracks and critiques official policies and proposes alternative legislation.

“Accelerating frigate delivery is exactly what Kemi [Badenoch, leader of the opposition and Leader of the Conservative Party] and I called for back in May, and just a few days after we did so, HMS Iron Duke was taken out of service,” James Cartlidge, the shadow defence secretary, told The Times.

“With even further shrinkage of the surface fleet now looming, we believe round-the-clock shifts and contingent labour to accelerate the build of the 13 new ships we ordered in government is the only realistic way of closing the frigate gap in the near term,” Cartlidge explained to the British paper of record.

The problems aren’t just a matter of labor. It was reported earlier this year that the first two of the Type 31 frigates were assembled out of sequence, resulting in months of delays, with the costs expected to be as high as £140 million ($187 million) to rectify.

About the Type 31 Frigate

• Year Introduced: Not yet introduced (initial planned date 2027, now delayed)
• Number Built: Four (4) fitting out, one more planned
• Length: 455 ft (138.7 m)
• Beam (Width): 66.8 ft (20.36 m)
• Displacement: 7,000 tonnes (6,900 long tons)
• Propulsion: Combined diesel and diesel (CODAD) propulsion; MAN Alpha VBS Mk 5 controllable pitch propeller; two shafts
• Top Speed: 26+ knots (29.9 mph, 48.1 km/h)
• Range: 7,500 nmi (8,630 mi, 13,890 km)
• Armament:
  • Main Gun: One Bofors 57mm Mk 3 / Mk110 medium-caliber gun
  • Secondary Guns: Two Bofors 40mm Mk 4 small-caliber guns plus heavy machine guns/miniguns
  • Air Defense: MBDA Sea Ceptor (CAMM) surface-to-air missile system (initial 12 to 24+ vertical launch cells)
  • Anti-Ship / Strike: Naval Strike Missile (NSM) and structural foundations/provisions for up to 32-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) modules
  • Flight Deck & Hangar: Accommodates an Augusta Westland Wildcat HMA2 or AW101 Merlin HM2 helicopter, plus uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) and Chinook-sized aircraft operations on the flight deck
• Crew Complement: ~105 core crew (accommodation for up to 140–190 personnel)

Also known as the Inspiration-class, current plans call for the Royal Navy to operate five of the small frigates, which will be named HMS Venturer, HMS Active, HMS Formidable, HMS Bulldog, and HMS Campbeltown. All are to be constructed by Babcock International in Rosyth, Scotland.

Designed as “cost-effective warships,” the Type 31 frigates will serve in a general-purpose role, primarily to maintain a persistent global and maritime presence. The vessels will likely be employed to patrol international shipping lanes, to conduct anti-narcotics and anti-piracy operations, and to provide a rapid response and assistance during natural disasters or crises.

“Type 31 frigates are all designed as general-purpose ships, meaning that they are jacks of all trades but masters of none. In terms of mission sets, the Type 31 frigates will be able to conduct surface warfare, air warfare, ground attack, and intelligence-gathering missions,” wrote Stavros Atlamazoglou for The National Interest.

The small vessels are also meant to free up the Royal Navy’s high-end surface combatants, including the Type 26 frigates and Type 45 destroyers, from routine peacetime tasks by taking on convoy protection, surveillance, and escort duties.

About the Author: Peter Suciu

Peter Suciu regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. He has contributed to dozens of newspapers, magazines, and websites over a 30-year career in journalism, including Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author at Editor@nationalinterest.org.

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