Leak found on £3bn two-week old HMS Queen Elizabeth

Just two weeks after the Royal Navy’s future flagship was launched by the Queen, a problem with one of its propeller shafts has been detected during sea trials.

One tabloid claimed that up to 200 litres of seawater has been leaking into the ship every hour as a result.

A spokesperson for the Royal Navy insists that the fault wouldn’t hold it back from sailing again in the new year and that the ship was due for some repairs anyway.

They add that the repair can be carried out without the ship going back to dry dock and will be paid for by contractors.

Defence secretary Gavin Williamson said: "This is the reason why we have the sea trials, to make sure that everything is working absolutely perfectly. This is something that work is currently ongoing to deal with."

Some have labelled the fault as highly embarrassing to the Royal Navy, with others accusing them of trying to hide it, then downplay the problem once the news was out of the bag.