Article

The Royal Navy's operational readiness has reached a historic low, with only half of its 63 ships currently available, including just three of six Type 45 destroyers and six of eight Type 23 frigates. Lord West, a former Navy chief, criticized this decline as detrimental to national security, while the Ministry of Defence announced a £5 billion increase in defense spending and plans for 13 new warships under the Atlantic Bastion programme to address the issue.