UK backs AUKUS delivery with £6bn and jobs push
AUKUS is moving from plans to delivery. UK Defence Secretary John Healey met his US and Australian counterparts at the Pentagon on 10 December 2025, with the Ministry of Defence calling the partnership “full steam ahead” after Washington completed its review. For learners: this is the moment when promises turn into factories, training pipelines and kit. The immediate focus is building and fielding capability, not just agreeing communiqués.
Quick refresher: AUKUS is a security pact between Australia, the UK and the US. Pillar I covers conventionally armed, nuclear‑powered submarines for the UK and Australia. Pillar II covers advanced tech such as undersea drones, AI, cyber, electronic warfare, quantum and hypersonics - projects intended to reach front‑line use rather than stay in labs.
What Britain has just committed: ministers say £6bn has gone into AUKUS‑related infrastructure in the past 18 months, especially at Barrow‑in‑Furness (submarine build) and Raynesway, Derby (reactors). The aim is continuous production - a new boat roughly every 18 months - which is a big shift in tempo for UK shipyards. That timetable has been set out in Parliament alongside the AUKUS push.
How many submarines, and when? The government’s Strategic Defence Review set a course for up to 12 SSN‑AUKUS attack submarines to replace the Astute class from the late 2030s. The AUKUS “optimal pathway” says the Royal Navy should receive SSN‑AUKUS in the late 2030s; Australia’s first domestically built boat follows in the early 2040s, with US Virginia‑class submarines sold to Australia in the early 2030s and a rotational US/UK presence in Western Australia from 2027.
Jobs and pay: the Ministry of Defence says the SSN‑AUKUS programme will create more than 7,000 new UK jobs and support over 21,000 roles at peak. Since July 2024, more than 3,000 jobs have been added at key nuclear sites, with a further 4,400 construction roles expected. Across the wider Defence Nuclear Enterprise, government analysis estimates workforce demand of around 65,000 by 2030, with an average salary near £45,500 - about 20% above the UK median. For context, the ONS puts Britain’s 2025 median full‑time pay around £39,000.
A note on job language we teach our students to watch: “new jobs” are different from “jobs supported”. The first means additional posts; the second includes existing roles kept busy by the project. Government press releases often use both - useful, but not the same thing - so always check which is being claimed. In this case, ministers quote 7,000 new jobs and 21,000 supported at peak.
Names and titles also tell a story. The UK release refers to the US counterpart as “Secretary of War Pete Hegseth”. Major outlets and US statements typically use “Secretary of Defense”. If you see unfamiliar titles, ask whether it’s a political signal or a legal change; your media‑literacy habit here is to compare sources before repeating terminology.
Australia’s part of the plan is locked in by the Geelong Treaty - a 50‑year UK‑Australia agreement signed on 26 July 2025 to enable design, build, operation and sustainment of SSN‑AUKUS. Canberra is now focused on workforce and infrastructure for hosting rotational submarines from 2027 and buying Virginia‑class boats in the early 2030s, while building its own SSN‑AUKUS in the 2040s. Australia’s defence minister calls the tasks “an enormous uplift” - training, supply chains and shipyard capacity chief among them.
Why AUKUS matters in class discussions: supporters argue it deters aggression in the Indo‑Pacific and strengthens Europe’s security by tying the UK, US and Australia closer together. Critics raise nuclear concerns too. Australian officials recently told senators there is “no impediment” to visits by US submarines that neither confirm nor deny nuclear‑weapon status, prompting debate about transparency and the Treaty of Rarotonga. This is where security aims and public consent meet.
Pillar II - the advanced tech side - is starting to show real‑world trials: launching and recovering uncrewed underwater systems from torpedo tubes on UK and US submarines, AI for maritime surveillance, and joint experiments such as “Maritime Big Play”. At the same time, analysts warn Pillar II funding lines and governance have lagged and need focus to deliver faster. Both can be true: capability demos and structural catch‑up at once.
What to look for next if you’re studying this year: watch for updates on export controls and information‑sharing, because delays there slow industry. Track whether the 18‑month production rhythm is met, and whether apprentice and graduate intakes rise as promised. Also watch US yard capacity and the Virginia‑class schedule, which affect Australia’s early steps and the wider timeline.
Finally, the jobs‑versus‑security conversation is not a choose‑one test. Programmes on this scale can bring well‑paid work to places like Barrow and Derby while raising serious questions about cost, oversight and nuclear stewardship. Our job as readers - and yours as students and teachers - is to hold all of that in view and test every claim against the evidence.