The world won’t wait: we need a new approach to defence procurement
The Ministry of Defence 'is still strolling along with procurement systems better suited to peacetime', John Cooper MP writes. (Martin / Adobe Stock Photo)
4 min read
British firms risk being undercut by international rivals, unless we can reshape our procurement system around three key principles
There is a story from the First World War, largely forgotten but very instructive. In 1915, Britain faced a crippling shell shortage on the Western Front. Our guns were silenced not by the enemy but by our own unpreparedness. What followed was the creation of the Ministry of Munitions, led by David Lloyd George – a wartime innovation born of necessity, fusing state direction with industrial muscle to deliver what our soldiers needed.
Now, more than a century later, the echoes are thunderous. Once again, Europe stands on the edge; Ukraine burns; Russia menaces; China stares across the Taiwan Strait; and the United States – our closest ally – is globally less assertive under a second Donald Trump administration.
As I warned the House earlier this year, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) is still strolling along with procurement systems better suited to peacetime. That must change urgently as a matter of strategic necessity.
The MoD has long wrestled with a paradox: too slow in peace; too underpowered in war.
British firms risk being undercut by international competitors operating with fewer regulatory barriers. Our industrial base, capable of being a furnace of innovation, remains warm but not yet white-hot. We cannot afford to let that potential go untapped.
Across Britain, those who supply parts, tools, training and talent to our armed forces are asking the same question: how can we help? In the shell crisis of 1915, government and business became partners not by choice but by necessity. In 2025, we must revive that partnership.
The procurement system must be reshaped around three principles: speed, risk tolerance and empowerment for those at the sharp end.
First, we must accept that time is a luxury we no longer have. As images from around the world show, the threat is not distant or theoretical; it is immediate and real.
Second, we must reassert economic realism. The defence sector isn’t just about boots on the ground or wings in the air; it’s about skilled jobs, cutting-edge innovation and regional prosperity. In towns and cities up and down the country, people could be building drones, retrofitting vehicles, or developing the AI capabilities that underpin modern defence. My constituency, Dumfries and Galloway, is rural, yet we produce the helmets for the pilots of the RAF’s F-35 Lightning II fighter-bombers.
The next war, if it comes, is not simply a war of soldiers but of systems
If we are spending more on defence, British Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) must be front and centre. They drive innovation, fuel economic renewal, and are key partners in strengthening national security. By investing in the UK’s dynamic SMEs and domestic suppliers, we can improve results for our armed forces and provide better value for taxpayers.
Third, we must realise that the next war, if it comes, is not simply a war of soldiers but of systems. Communications networks, energy infrastructure, undersea cables and satellites are already contested domains. That is why procurement reform is so critical. We must remove obstacles delaying the delivery of equipment, technologies and services to our armed forces.
A positive example of this is the MoD’s appointment of Constellia to deliver the Neutral Vendor Framework for Innovation (NVFi). Developed by Commercial X, the model is designed to open up defence supply chains to SMEs previously locked out by complexity and cost.
Significantly, the framework is also intended for use across the national security landscape and potentially wider government. Reform is as much about responsiveness and adaptability as it is about acquiring kit. The NVFi offers a credible example of excellence in procurement – we must see more of it.
NVFi will only succeed if ministers and officials choose to use it boldly, however, and if the culture around risk, value and innovation is genuinely reset. Given the Defence Secretary’s stark warning that “tyranny has not been eliminated”, there must be no tolerance for drift.
Too often, politicians fumble to frame the argument: spending on defence is painted as a burden, or a reluctant obligation. It is neither. It is the first duty of a government to protect its people.
Lloyd George’s Ministry of Munitions succeeded not because it spent recklessly but because it united purpose with agility. Over a century on, Britain must again marry state intent with industrial capability. The pace must quicken – or the moment will pass. The world will not wait. Nor should we.
John Cooper is Conservative MP for Dumfries and Galloway, and a member of the Business and Trade Select Committee
