In meeting the challenges of a world that is ‘more serious & less predictable than at any time since the end of the Cold War’ and where ‘technology is changing how war is fought. The SDR represents what the Defence Secretary, John Healey, describes as a ‘landmark shift’ in the UK’s approach to deterrence & defence.
The review calls for a transformation in the way that defence tends to be organised and delivered, & at its heart, it represents 3 main premises:
The review advocates for a shift towards ‘warfighting readiness’. This requires technological innovation at a wartime pace, strengthened homeland defence, a new partnership with industry, and radical reform in the procurement of defence equipment.
A new, more lethal, integrated force model for the armed forces that utilises AI & autonomy alongside more conventional warfighting capabilities, which positions ‘NATO first’. There will be no ‘end state’ for the integrated force, with its design & capabilities continuing to evolve as threats & technologies do’. The armed forces will be expected to move with the capacity to fight as part of NATO. In addition to operating alone as an integrated, sovereign force, the armed forces will also be expected to deploy with a coalition of other countries, either as a lead or a contributing partner.
A ‘whole of society approach’ to the review’s implementation includes wider participation in achieving national resilience & renewing the relationship between the armed forces & society.
The SDR makes 62 recommendations for transforming defence over the next decade. Those recommendations are premised on the government’s commitment to reach 3% of GDP in defence spending in the next Parliament, when fiscal and economic conditions permit. However, the SDR is also clear that, with additional resources, or if circumstances change, the transformation of defence could be accelerated faster than the 10-year timescale currently envisaged.
The government has said that it endorses and will implement all recommendations made in the SDR.
