Following the Government’s announcement of the National Security Capability Review (NSCR), unofficial reports have emerged suggesting that major reconfigurations to the United Kingdom’s amphibious units are being considered, with specific threats to the strength of the Royal Marines and to the Royal Navy’s Albion class amphibious ships. The review process has been almost entirely closed and Parliament has not been involved in the discussion of what would represent a drastic reduction in defence capability. The Defence Secretary’s success in gaining control of the Defence strand of the NSCR through the initiation of the Modernising Defence Programme provides an opportunity to open up this dire prospect for proper examination.

The British experience in amphibious operations is extensive and has been hard-won. It is sustained today by a core of specialists who sit within the units that are reportedly under threat. These capabilities have proved themselves effective in the past, have demonstrated their utility to recent operations, and will be of continuing relevance to operations in the future.

The Royal Marines, at the heart of this capability, have had to meet a number of challenges in recent years that are having an appreciable effect on their fighting power, their training cycles, their basing and their morale. The reported reductions would further compound these challenges. Given the disproportionate contribution the Royal Marines make to Defence and the sheer range and versatility of their military skills, both they and the country’s security would be significantly undermined.

With the impending disposal of HMS Ocean, the additional loss of the Albion class vessels would mean the end of the Royal Navy’s specialist amphibious fleet. Ships— such as a Queen Elizabeth class carrier —which have been cited as alternative platforms, are in reality no substitute for the purpose-built amphibious warships in this role, and a high level of operational risk would have to be assumed if such plans were to proceed. The reported reductions in personnel would also have a profound effect on the communities in which these units are based and from which they are drawn.

Wider global trends and the overall direction of UK foreign policy all point to the absolute necessity of retaining a meaningful amphibious capability that can project power far from its home base. At a time when the UK is seemingly considering divesting itself of these units and platforms, virtually every other international defence power is investing in them. The world is changing and the Royal Navy and Royal Marines need to change with it. However, if the price of such change is the sacrifice of this country’s amphibious capability, we can only conclude this to be a short-sighted, militarily illiterate manoeuvre totally at odds with strategic reality.

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