It will be very interesting to observe how the new government in London deals with the problems of Defence and Security. In the case of British Foreign Policy and Economics, the cabinet will wish to be seen as stable and predictable, so it seems it has been elected on the basis of different people, but similar policies i.e. “change, but no change”. It is certainly the case that historically, Labour Governments have not made dramatic cuts to Defence and I am hopeful this will be the case in the next five years.
The first tests for the new Secretary of Defence will be at Budget time and when he meets his American counterpart. He will need to demonstrate that he can win the difficult argument with the Treasury and that he supports our main Ally, despite a big difference in the approach to the Middle East. I expect there will be a close alignment on Ukraine and Russia, but notwithstanding MI6 paranoia, we will not be quite so adjacent with the US about China. The key issue though will be credible military capabilities. To be taken seriously by the Pentagon, the government will have to put its “money where its mouth is” and a good beginning would be to fund a replacement for our aging tank fleet.
We Need A New Tank
Rupert Wieloch 