Forces chief kept in post to lead defence overhaul
THE head of the Armed Forces is to be kept in post until the end of the year in order to supervise an overhaul of the military, it will be announced today.
The Daily Telegraph understands that No 10 will confirm that General Sir Nick Carter’s tenure as Chief of the Defence Staff will be extended so that he sees through the results of the Integrated Defence Review.
The review, to be published later this month, will address how the military should adapt to the changing face of warfare, and is expected to have a large focus on space and cyber operations. A defence source said it was the Prime Minister’s decision to extend Sir Nick’s tenure in order to ensure “continuity and stability” as the military prepares to fight the “threats of tomorrow”.
The review will underscore Boris Johnson’s post-brexit “Global Britain” vision and comes after he awarded the Ministry of Defence £16.5billion extra funding, its biggest cash injection since the end of the Cold War.
Along with Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, Sir Nick is seen as central to crafting the UK “vision for defence”, having authored the Integrated Operating Concept, which sets out a new strategic approach to defence that aims to
integrate new technology with more traditional war-fighting skills.
Sir Nick, 62, who is in his third year as CDS, was due to retire in June, although he said in a previous interview with The Telegraph that it remained “entirely possible that I will be asked to serve beyond June”. He is said to be “honoured” to continue in the role.
It is understood that the post has never been one of fixed terms in order to “keep the right person with the right skills at the right time”.
Senior Whitehall insiders said Sir Nick was angered by reports earlier this year that he had fallen out of favour with Mr Johnson, and would be made to leave his role early. The claims were described as “categorically untrue” and “a scurrilous hit job on someone who has committed their entire life to public service and defending this nation”.
It came as Sir Stephen Lovegrove, the Mod’s permanent secretary, is due to move to the Cabinet Office at the end of the month as its new National Security Adviser, with his successor to be announced shortly. It is felt that keeping Sir Nick in place helps to have “some continuity at the head of military while the new guy beds in”. Another senior Whitehall source said keeping Sir Nick in post “makes lots of sense”. “Why would you want the double dip disruption of both moving at the same time?” they said, adding that a number of “quite big things happening this year” would benefit from the “continuity”.
The deployment of aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, and whether the US pulls troops out of Afghanistan on May 1 were both cited as other reasons for having a steady hand at the helm.
The source added that the longer Sir Nick stayed the longer Mr Wallace had to see if potential replacements “are delivering”. Contenders include General Sir Mark Carleton-smith, 57, the head of the Army and a former director of Special Forces, and General Sir Patrick Sanders, 54, Commander of Strategic Command, whose current role includes overseeing offensive cyber and other cutting-edge technologies.
Lord West, the former first sea lord, has called for Admiral Tony Radakin, 55, the current First Sea Lord, to get the role, having previously told The Telegraph that threats from Russia and China at sea make it “probably a good idea to have a maritime CDS”.