decide between pleasing voters in who traditionally rely on manufacturing jobs and the intention to promote post-Brexit Britain as a free market open to global business. The matter is expected to be the hot topic at Europe’s biggest arms fair at the ExCeL Centre in London this week, while defence industry bosses look forward to making up for a lost time after the pandemic blocked popular trade fairs like the Farnborough and Paris air shows.
Since the introduction of the Enterprise Act in 2002, the government of the UK has intervened in 15 takeovers on national security grounds. However, these efforts were futile, and therefore, ministers are confident in the new national security and investment bill, taking effect in January, to give them more powers to intervene in such matters.
Nevertheless, some experts are of the view that these reforms are long overdue, and may in fact be too late. “One could argue that the capacity and the legislative framework to make these decisions with regard to national sovereign capability has not been present,” Kevin Craven, the CEO of defence industry lobby group ADS Group, said. “So inevitably, these considerations come late in the day and it’s hurried.”
