Johnson aims to ‘strengthen union’ by building armoured vehicles in Wales

Boris Johnson has declared that armoured vehicles will be built in Wales as part of an attempt to “strengthen the union” and prevent Welsh independence.

The Ajax armoured fighting vehicles will meanwhile be manufactured in Oakdale in southeast Wales.

The plans, which will also see the establishment of a “trade hub” in Wales, are part of a new strategy entitled Global Britain in a Competitive Age which will be published on Tuesday.

According to details released to the Telegraph newspaper, the plans cover a “much-anticipated overhaul of the nation’s position in the world following Brexit”.

“The foundation of our foreign policy is who we are as a country: our values, our strengths and – most importantly – our people. So I am determined to ensure we have a foreign policy that delivers for those people,” Boris Johnson said.

The plan also includes investment in military development in Scotland, including building eight Type-26 frigates, sophisticated anti-submarine warships, on the Clyde, and five Type-31 frigates, cheaper general-purpose warships, in Rosyth in Scotland.

Further jobs will be created outside of London by the establishment of the new National Cyber Security Force HQ in the North of England and another trade hub in Northern Ireland.

Tom Tugendhat, Tory chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee, said the nation had “needed a strategic vision for some time” and welcomed the move to put “flesh on the bones of the slogan ‘Global Britain’.”

“Kings, presidents, ministers and ambassadors from around the world told the Foreign Affairs Committee the same thing – Britain has been absent for years, it’s time we came back and this is our chance to do it,” he said.