By Chris McCall

Copyright dailyrecord

Keir Starmer thanked Glasgow shipbuilders today for helping defend Europe from Vladimir Putin’s Russia. The Prime Minister used his keynote speech at the Labour conference to hail the “talent of the Clyde” for securing a multi-billion pound deal which will see frigates built at Govan and Scotstoun for the Norwegian navy. Starmer told party members the UK Government’s decision to invest in defence was “vital for national security” but had only happened as a result of “really tough” spending decisions. The two BAE Systems-owned yards on the Upper Clyde now have guaranteed work well into the 2030s as a result of a deal reached between the UK and Norwegian governments, which will see at least five Type 26 frigates built for the NATO ally. Clyde workers are already building a fleet of Type 26 ships for the Royal Navy. Starmer told the conference: “Take our investment in defence – undeniably good for growth. Vital for national security and the whole of the continent. Impossible without really tough decisions on aid. Just look at the new deal to build Norwegian frigates – that doesn’t happen without our investment. A decade of shipbuilding on the Clyde. That heritage, that pride, secure for future generations. “Now, those frigates could have been built anywhere. But that was the old mentality, that it didn’t matter. But we want to build them here, in Britain. We want to invest in that reputation, in those skills, in the talent of Glasgow and the Clyde. “Now conference, five days after that deal I went to the shipbuilding yard on the Clyde. I went to the canteen where the workers were having their lunch. I stood in front of them and I said ‘thank you for your hard – and your reputation which allowed us to win that deal’. “They were being judged against other countries – France, Germany, and the US – and they won. They were proud. They said to me, this was the answer to the mantra they heard, people who said that British shipbuilding was dead. They told me how much it meant to them and their communities. “And they were proud because they knew exactly what those frigates were for. And they were proud to contribute, proud that their community was chosen by an ally looking for a partner to defend our continent from Putin’s aggression.” To sign up to the Daily R ecord Politics newsletter, click here