THE leader of a council is calling for cross-party support to help protect the future of a Royal Navy ship affiliated with the county.

Potential defence cuts could see Plymouth-based ship HMS Bulwark decommissioned along with its sister ship HMS Albion.

No final decisions have yet been made have yet been over the future of the vessels.

Durham County Council leader Councillor Simon Henig is now calling on members from all parties to support a campaign which has been launched by Plymouth City Council to save the ships.

He said: “The longstanding relationship between Durham and HMS Bulwark is very important to our county and we were honoured to grant its crew the Freedom of the City in 2010.

“We have always taken great pride in welcoming the company to Durham and we know hundreds of people have enjoyed turning out to watch their Freedom Parades in recent years.

While the future of these vessels remains uncertain, I would urge everyone to do what they can to help protect HMS Bulwark and its sister ship HMS Albion.”

The last freedom parade took place in 2016, when the ship’s company paraded through Durham city as part of a visit to the region which renewed affiliations with the county.