Labour has vowed to “put shipbuilding on the map” again in the North East.

Employment minister Alison McGovern made the pledge on a visit to the A&P shipyard in Hebburn on Thursday morning.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service after a tour of the ship repair facility, she said the historic Tyneside industry’s role in the modern UK economy is “too often” forgotten and called for backing for the sector to help bring down the North East’s unemployment rate.

The region’s jobless figures are the worst in the country, with 5.6% out of work compared to a national rate of 4%.

Ms McGovern, whose Birkenhead constituency is also a major shipbuilding location, said: “The situation that the North East is in is not acceptable to me. This is an amazing place, the shipyard here is fantastic, and it is full of brilliant, talented people.

“So it is not acceptable to me that the North East, which has so much to offer the United Kingdom, is behind in terms of its employment figures. What I really want as minister for employment is to close that gap, and that way we can make sure our economy grows and grows sustainably.

“What the new Government can do and is doing… Firstly, we have our new industrial strategy which is really important because it sets out where we are going to really have influence. Advanced manufacturing is a part of that.

“And I would say on shipbuilding in particular that it too often gets forgotten about. Part of the reason I was absolutely passionate about coming here today is because that cannot happen.

“It is a vital national industry. It is incredibly important to places like where we are today, to the North East as a whole and the city region economy, and to the nation as a whole. I think we need to put shipbuilding on the map.”

The Hebburn yard, acquired by A&P from Cammell Laird in 2001, boasts the biggest commercial dry-dock on the east coast of England and is one of the last working shipyards in the North East – a region whose shipbuilding prowess made it world famous.

A&P, which carries out repairs on Royal Navy vessels and cruise ships, announced earlier this year that it was closing down its Teesside facility as it focused on operations on Tyneside and Cornwall.

Following a tour alongside Jarrow and Gateshead East MP Kate Osborne, in which the pair met with apprentices at the Hebburn shipyard, Ms McGovern said she was aware of the industry’s importance to the North East’s identity and said the UK needed a generation of new engineers with the skills to build submarines and ships – opportunities she wants to see going to young people deserving of a  “better shot” in life after struggling through the pandemic.

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The minister added: “I understand the identity that comes from shipbuilding and marine engineering more broadly and the place in our history of this very important location… but actually it is about the future and we know that in our future we are going to need a lot of skilled, talented marine engineers.

"We have met some of them today and, while we have been through a bad time as a country, they make me feel hopeful.

“We want to see a good future for this place and for the whole United Kingdom economy.”