Wasteful defence spending needs an urgent overhaul
NOW that the Brexit stalemate has been broken, Britain is about to enter a new political era. With his huge general election victory, Boris Johnson has both the mandate and the majority to embark on a significant programme of reform.
Few sectors are more ripe for change than defence. The first duty of any government is to protect the nation, yet the achievement of that goal has been undermined in recent years by warped priorities and gross mismanagement.
In too many parts of the Armed Forces, a culture of inefficiency prevails, reflected in top-heavy bureaucracies, wasteful procurement processes and outdated practices.
Clinging to dreams of imperial grandeur some of the top brass are reluctant to face pressing modern realities such as cyber-warfare, terrorism and unmanned weaponry.
For decades, governments of both parties have colluded with this failure of vision by the Ministry of Defence, wary of challenging the commanders. Commitment to defence was judged entirely by the size of the MoD’s ever-increasing budget, not by the effectiveness of spending.
But there are signs that the new Government will take a different approach, focused on our real national interests rather than grandiose fantasies.
TO SEE if taxpayers are receiving value for the £39.3billion spent this year on defence, a far-reaching review into the MoD is to be conducted by Dominic Cummings, the chief Downing Street strategist. A persistent critic of it, he is the ideal figure for this vital role, not only because of his maverick genius but also because of his record as an incisive operator.
In defiance of all odds, he masterminded both the Leave victory in the 2016 referendum and the Conservatives’ remarkable recent election triumph. Earlier in the decade, he was Michael Gove’s adviser at the Department for Education, where his drive for reform provoked outrage from the unions and teaching establishment.
Yet he had a long-term impact in raising standards.This month, the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development reported that the United Kingdom is rising up the international league tables in maths, science and reading.
The news that Cummings is now to turn his forensic spotlight on the MoD should be welcomed by the public – even if the top brass are alarmed.
His outlook was recently captured in his ferocious condemnation of the procurement process which “has continued to squander billions, enriching some of the worst corporate looters and corrupting public life”.
The same dysfunctionality can be seen in the neglect of our home waters. A proper patrol force around our 7,000-mile-plus coast, especially in the Channel, would enhance our borders and deter risky crossings by migrant boats.
SHAMEFULLY, our Border Force has just five cutters for such a vital task, compared to the 600 vessels used by Italy to guard its coast, or the 240 by Greece.
Yet Britain found £6.2billion to spend on a pair of aircraft carriers, which boosted the prestige of the admirals but did nothing to strengthen our defences against real threats.
As floating targets vulnerable to new types of anti-ship missiles and drone technology, they need much of the Royal Navy’s surface fleet to protect them.
Moreover, the F-35 strike aircraft they carry are ruinously expensive and have limited range. Little wonder that Cummings has called the carrier policy “a farce”.
But this is just part of a pattern of destructive extravagance. It has been estimated that over the last 15 years, £280billion has been wasted by the MoD on disastrous equipment decisions. At present, just three of the Royal Navy’s six Type 45 destroyers are operational because of engine problems. The Army’s recent recruitment initiative was a dismal flop, while shortages of ammunition and spares are rife.
For all the talk about concentration on the front line, the balance of the Armed Forces is still wrong. In 2016, the distinguished intelligence officer Frank Ledwidge argued that the Army is “over-burdened and over-staffed with senior ranks” – there were more senior commanders than operational Challenger 2 tanks. Similarly, the Royal Navy has more admirals than operational warships.
Yesterday, it was reported that, in advance of Cummings’s review, five of the 42 admirals are to be axed. That just illustrates his potential impact.
At last, the spendthrifts of the MOD may have met their match.
‘The Royal Navy has more admirals than it has operational warships’