Lord Drayson Sets Out Plans to Deliver A Clear Industrial Strategy For Defence

UK Ministry of Defence, The Ministry of Defence has set up a team to deliver the new Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS). Although the Defence Industrial Strategy has recently been discussed in the news media, described by some as a 'secret review of the defence industry', the Minister for Defence Procurement, Lord Drayson, believes it can bring real benefits to the way MOD works with its industry partners.  
 
Here he outlines the work underway to deliver a Defence Industrial Strategy by Christmas 2005.  
 
“Coming into this Department, one of my first impressions was the real complexity of the business, and the difficulties industry has in understanding and dealing with us.  
 
“This matters. The threats we face are evolving quickly, technological change is increasingly driven by civil investment (and so may be more readily available to our opponents), and our forces are operating ever further afield and with a wider range of allies.  
 
“Companies too are being forced to contemplate significant changes to their businesses, without us having a ready picture of what the impact might be on our ability to equip and support our Armed Forces.  
 
“So the Secretary of State asked me to examine and set out publicly, in as much detail as possible, which domestic industrial capabilities are essential to our national security and competitiveness.”  
 
So this will be a new strategy?  
 
“Yes and no. The Defence Industrial Policy was published in 2002, but this strategy will set out in detail what applying that policy means in practice.  
 
“I'm conscious that there is a lot of excellent work already underway throughout the Department – all over the place! – looking at aspects of this. But what we need is something that pulls everything together, rapidly.  
 
“The Strategy should be gritty and relevant, setting out clearly what we care about strategically from the UK defence industry – which includes foreign-owned companies operating here. So plain English, no beating around the bush.”  
 
It sounds as if this is will be a MOD view imposed on industry?  
 
“I certainly hope not, on several levels. First, we are actively engaging industry – we can't do this work without them, and so far they have welcomed the prospect.  
 
“I've briefed the National Defence Industry Council, which will remain engaged, and we've invited a small team of senior industrialists to advise us throughout the process. I have also briefed the trade unions.  
 
“Second, this is a cross-Government effort; the Secretary of State has recently written formally to other key Departments, and officials are consulting on a regular basis.  
 
“And not least, it will mean examining how we do business too, whether in the Defence Procurement Agency, Defence Logistics Organisation, Equipment Capability Customer, Science & Technology areas, Defence Export Services Organisation, wherever necessary – change on both sides.  
 
“Producing the Strategy will be a demanding task, and it will need the Department, industry, and wider Government to work hard to deliver a credible product on time. I know that MOD, at least, is sure to do all it can to achieve this.”