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SHIPBUILDING on the Clyde is set to be the big loser in the defence review unveiled today as David Cameron announces he is cancelling orders for five frigates.

It is feared the order for Type 26 frigates from BAE Systems at Govan and Scotstoun will be cut from 13 to eight.

The SNP claim the jobs of 3000 workers at the Glasgow yards are being put at risk to pay for replacing Trident nuclear subs based at Faslane .

Cameron will present the five-year National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security review to the House of Commons today.

The Prime Minister will pour £178billion into equipment and support over the next decade.

There is some good news for Scotland – like the investment in nine maritime patrol aircraft and extending the life of the Typhoon jet squadrons that could secure work at RAF Lossiemouth.

SNP MSP for Glasgow Anniesland Bill Kidd yesterday wrote to Defence Secretary Michael Fallon calling for clarity on the future of the Type 26 contract.

Kidd said: “During the independence referendum there was a clear pledge from the UK Government that if Scotland voted No, the work for 13 of these frigates would be awarded to the Clyde.

“One year on shipyard workers are hearing about possible cuts to their workload as the Tories put useless nuclear weapons ahead of conventional naval forces and the jobs of our shipbuilders.”

American-owned firms will be big winners in the review.

Cameron is due to announce nine new Boeing P8 maritime patrol aircraft to fill the gap left by scrapping the Nimrod squadron that led to the closure of RAF Kinloss in Moray.

The MoD had already spent £4billion on British-built replacement Nimrods but Tory cuts to the defence budget saw them destroyed in 2011 – a year before they were due to come into service.

Two new 5000-strong Army Strike Brigades are to be built up for rapid deployment around the globe.

And Cameron will increase the order of F-35 jets – built by US aerospace giants Lockheed Martin – for UK supercarriers.

(Image: Getty Images)

Chancellor George Osborne said yesterday: “We are going to step up the aircraft carrier punch of the United Kingdom. We are going to make sure that when these aircraft carriers are available they are going to have planes that can fly from them in force.

“By 2023, we will be able to have 24 of these jets, some of the most powerful in the world, the F-35, on the carriers’ decks.”

Those will be the first batch of a total order of 138 of F-35 Lightning II jets.

In the foreword to the review, Cameron writes that Tory policies achieved economic growth that meant defence spending could be afforded.

He added: “Our armed forces, our police and our security and intelligence agencies put their lives on the line every day.

“Their service is an inspiration to us all and they are the pride of our nation.

“Through this review we will back them and use our hard-earned economic strength to support our armed forces, and to give those in our police and our security and intelligence agencies who fight terrorism the resources they need to help keep our country safe.”

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