Press Releases
COST-EFFECTIVE DEFENCE
PRESS RELEASE
30 October 2006
Britain's military is in crisis; under-equipped, undermanned, undersupplied and severely overstretched. Spending is not matching aspirations and there is an emerging consensus that this must be addressed. But what is the most intelligent way to apportion those funds in terms of costs versus capabilities?
The Economic Research Council, Britain’s oldest economic think-tank, has commissioned Lewis Page, author of "Lions, Donkeys and Dinosaurs - waste and blundering in the Armed Forces" to explore how the UK could radically reorganise its Armed Forces within the existing budget to finally move them beyond their redundant Cold War footing. Page explains in detail what equipment and capabilities needs to be bought and discarded and how funds can be found for a 50% pay rise for combat troops. Page lucidly illustrates how;
• Disproportionate resources in money and personnel are spent on:
i) Anti-submarine warfare
ii) Superfighters
iii) Surface-based defence against enemy air attack
iv) Overcoming enemy armoured forces using ground units
v) Delivery of explosive strikes deep in enemy-held territory
• Insufficient effort is being made in:
i) Provision of deployable ground combat troops with a small logistical footprint
ii) Utility/transport helicopters
iii) Both heavy and light military air transports
iv) Sea-based aviation of every type
Please find below a quote from his paper, which is entitled, “Cost-Effective Defence”
Lewis Page says:
"It is no surprise that spending does not match aspirations: the UK cannot afford to buy multiple sledgehammers for every nut. Any kind of British force which is only useful for conventional warfare against a nuclear-armed enemy has to be assessed as something of a luxury."
And on the chronic shortage of helicopters for operational use:
"The British transport helicopter fleet is badly disorganised and has suffered from decades of under-investment . . . This more than anything shows how the procurement process is failing our combat troops: their most urgent requirement is being postponed yet again due to utter mismanagement."
