Recommendation 17

Given that systemic challenges have not been resolved in the previous thirteen reviews of defence procurement, we doubt that the Integrated Review will come up with even a short-term fix. We believe that the Review ought to address the strategic issues that should underpin the UK’s approach to defence procurement, in order to provide a sound basis to address these challenges in the future. The UK’s capability priorities and force structure should inform the answers to the following strategic questions on the procurement process: a. What capabilities and skills must remain sovereign and what can be bought “off-the-shelf”? What are the implications for operational advantage, freedom of action, cost and national prosperity? ) b. How does the UK define value for money in defence procurement? In Search of Strategy — The 2020 Integrated Review 59 c. How can UK defence procurement ensure the resilience of logistics and supply? d. How can the procurement process be used to foster innovation and ensure access to intellectual property? e. Is defence procurement, research and development keeping pace with future requirements? f. How will lessons from procurement failures be captured and addressed? The Committee welcomes ongoing work to review the UK’s Defence Industrial Strategy. This strategy should be informed by the strategic decisions made as part of the Integrated Review. The Committee will continue to explore the UK’s defence industrial policy in our ongoing parallel inquiry on this topic.