To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his oral statement of 13 February, Official Report, column 1142, when he expects to begin the overhaul and re-equipment programme for the three landing ships logistic to begin; and how much will be spent on it in each of the next three years.

Design studies are already under way. We expect work to begin in the summer of 1993. It is not our practice to publish details of our future expenditure plans on a year-by-year basis.