Joint frigate program discussed by Canada, U.K.

Canada and Britain have been holding quiet but lengthy discussions to develop replacement frigates for both of their navies.

The shipbuilding program is being proposed by British defence giant BAE Systems Inc., but has also been pitched to other countries, including Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Turkey.

Word of the talks emerged recently in debate before the British House of Commons.

Britain's parliamentary secretary for defence, Gerald Howarth, said he was delighted that a "close discussion with the Canadians" was underway over the so-called Global Combat Ship program.

A spokesman for Defence Minister Peter MacKay played down the talks.

Jay Paxton described them as discussions over "best practices, interoperability, costs and numerous other issues."

Canada's Defence Department is refurbishing its 12 Halifax-class patrol frigates, launched in the 1990s but expected to reach the end of their life around 2025.

Planning has long been underway for a replacement vessel, tentatively dubbed the Single Class Surface Combat ship. Under the plan, different kinds of warships would be built on top of the same basic hull design.

The frigate replacement is a huge chunk of the estimated $35 billion the Conservative government has committed in its recent 20-year national shipbuilding strategy. That plan, which the federal government recently formalized in a request for proposals, would see two shipyards selected as prime contractors.

Paxton said that would not change.

"Every new ship that Canada builds for the Canadian navy will be built in Canada," he said.

BAE Systems, the maker of Canada's submarine fleet, has been promoting its proposal for joint warship development for about a year and has approached Brazil, which plans to build six warships over the next decade. The two countries signed a defence agreement that allows the South American country's naval architects access to BAE's normally secretive development labs.