HAMPSHIRE county bosses have ruled out backing the preservation of one of the Royal Navy’s best loved ships because of cost and lack of space to berth it.

The last of the Royal Navy’s Invincible-class carriers, HMS Illustrious, ended its 32-year career last month.

Now the 22,000-tonne ship has been decommissioned, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) is weighing up the future of the venerable Hampshire based ship which must lay in the UK.

But leisure boss Cllr Keith Chapman today revealed that the Royal Navy has not even approached the county council for money – although if it did it could never afford the millions required.

Speaking at a full council meeting, he said: “The county council fully recognises the huge contribution made by HMS Illustrious during her long and prestigious naval service.

“We are also aware the MoD is currently considering a number of bids to secure her future.

“I hope all members will join me in expressing the hope that such a future can be achieved when taking into account the sheer scale and ambition of such a project.

“The county council has not received any approaches concerning these proposals which are likely to have a national if not international profile."

He added: “The county council has already played its part in supporting our maritime heritage in a joint project to restore and transfer the First World War warship HMS M33 to the National Museum of the Royal Navy.”

Cllr Chapman was responding to a question by Fareham county councillor Chris Wood about the county’s role in securing the future for the warship, known affectionately as Lusty.

Cllr Wood suggested the ship could find a home at the Explosion! Museum of Firepower at Gosport. This, he said, could be made possible by a joint scheme with business and local authorities.

He said: “This would also create significant and desperately needed investment, jobs and tourism opportunities in Gosport.

“Illustrious must be preserved for future generations in the same way our nation rightly preserved HMS Victory and HMS Warrior, as she deserves to rest in the same harbour she has graced for generations.”

But Cllr Chapman replied: “The advice that has been given to me to preserve such a warship of that size it would have to be in an appropriate dry dock.

“As you can imagine these dry docks are not much available, particularly in the South East of England as far as I am concerned.

“Also the cost of maintaining the ship is between £8m and £9m. This is a national project and should be funded by national funds rather than local authority funds."

He added: "I should be very interested to see what Portsmouth City Council do about it.”

HMS Illustrious, was built by Swan Hunter shipbuilders on the Tyne, joining HMS Invincible and HMS Ark Royal.

She made a debut in the Falklands War effort, before going on to sail nearly 900,000 miles around the planet while on deployments.

She served in the Bosnian, Iraq and Sierra Leone conflicts as well as helping evacuate British citizens during the 2006 Lebanon war.

The carrier also memorably accompanied the Clipper Round the World Race fleet on Southampton Water in a spectacular departure ceremony in 2011.

Last year, HMS Illustrious was involved in aid efforts in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, which killed more than 6,000 people.