Expect lots of briefing and counter briefing in the next few months as Lord Levene submits his final report on another round of defence transformation.
If you cast your mind back to August last year when Lord Levene was appointed to the Defence Reform Unit I predicted sparks woudl be flying round about now, especially in light of continued budgetary issues and the fact that he has form in this area.
The Guardian has reported today on some of the suggestions in a draft copy that has been circulated and no doubt designed to be leaked to the press to gauge initial reaction.
Some of these include;
Thinning the ranks at the very top of the military. At the moment each service has, effectively, two chiefs – one responsible for strategy and management, the other for operations. Levene believes that there should only be one chief for each arm. Under this model, operational control would be pushed down the chain of command from a four star rank to a three star.
Absolutely, but it shouldn’t stop at the top. All services have suffered from rank inflation and a balooning of staff positions. If we are to get the knife out, lets be serious about it and ignore the cries about skills and experience loss.
Establishing a new appointments committee that would be responsible for choosing the highest ranking officers in the army, RAF and the Royal Navy. The committee would be chaired by a non-executive director, chosen by the defence secretary. At the moment, the services make most mid-ranking and senior appointments in-house.
I think I would rather see the CDS appointed by the Defence Select Committee rather than the SoS Defence, but in general this makes sensem, my only reservation is that there has already been an over politisization of the senior officers and we should guard against this making it worse. There is room for free thinkers and radicals but although they seem to get aqueezed out now would this make it worse?
Creating a new defence board that will have only one member of the military sitting on it. This would be the overall chief of the defence staff, currently General Sir David Richards. At the moment, chiefs from all three services sit on the board.
Expect competition for the CDS to get ‘proper serious’ and I am not sure about this one, on the face of it, the Cheif of the Defence Staff is supposed to be service agnostic but human nature means this is a tough trick to pull off.
Getting rid of many of the other minor boards that are responsible for managing different projects. In their place, individuals would be appointed to run them, and be held accountable for delays or overspending. This would cut down on bureaucracy and save money.
Like it
Extending the time that some officials spend in posts at MoD headquarters from two to four years. This could provide greater continuity, particularly in important areas of procurement and strategic planning.
This has been a long time coming as the merry go round of both civilian and military posts, especially in major projects, has led to a culture of change for change sake, career driven decision making and a serious lack of continuity that results in our depressingly familiar cost and time over runs.
Is 4 years enough?
An interesting quote from Himan G Rickover on the matter
When doing a job — any job — one must feel that he owns it, and act as though he will remain in that job forever. He must look after his work just as conscientiously, as though it were his own business and his own money. If he feels he is only a temporary custodian, or that the job is just a stepping stone to a higher position, his actions will not take into account the long-term interests of the organization. His lack of commitment to the present job will be perceived by those who work for him, and they, likewise, will tend not to care. Too many spend their entire working lives looking for the next job. When one feels he owns his present job and acts that way, he need have no concern about his next job.
Mothballing more equipment and vehicles seems a not so painful way to go. They could put more things into reserve and extended readiness. The Falklands and Gibraltra sub governments could be asked to contribute more to the MoD and their own defence and constabulary.
Cut recruitment money and retrain and re-roll current service men and women if they become redundant in their current situations. Charge University cadets little fees.
Encouraging more foreign military training in the UK would perhaps save the military having to go abroad and to project itself as much.
Shut some old obsolete barracks. Lease MoD estate. I could go on, one thing should definitely be kept in mind and thats morale.
Sorry I was referring to CUTS! And I’m sorry to say I didn’t really read the article, I’ve failed again.
only one sitting on the board, i can see the thinking as it seems dannet and stirup were always at loggerheads (dannet has been sounding off again at the hay on wye festival) however look how stirup shat on everyone, imagine if he ahd no obstructions. If i come across as anti stirup, i am! By taking the extension he sided with mr broon who didn’t like the forces and needed a puppet in the chair, f***ing judas
Oh and as a sidenote i see call me dave has got some dodgy lord in to do a review on cyprus, anyone care to take bets on one of the bases closing bye bye inf batt and no more 6 week exercises out there, around 2015?
and post tour decompression in Bordon!
Paul, it’s Lord Ashcroft. In my experience he has always used his position and wealth to look after the legacy of the armed forces and comes across as a genuine fellow interested in promoting the armed forces.
I don’t see any reason for a review into the Cyprus bases. The last 20 years has shown how vital they are.
@TD sorry I’m not totally sure what you mean. Have you just got to Bordon Army camp, I live in Petersfield and did in Bordon so have a little understanding and familiarisation.
Question: Are they moving out this year or not as there’s been no definitive decision statement yet? And will they keep Longmoor and it’s training ranges? I know the RN train doing basic combat training/Afghanistan preparation there, and it’s used by many others but I think the site and training ranges are probably (at least) slightly underused.
Sorry TD I did know what you meant, it threw me as it was off topic. Anyway enjoy being in sleepy Bordon (sorry) and kudos for doing the site whilst on tour.
Welcome to TD, STV
I do hope the review comes out with a common sense answer, like, yes, Cyprus is essential
Joe88, was having a joke with Paul about Bordon, am not there. Paul will be along in a minute to tell us all how REME does not mean Royal Engineers Made Easy
Having one person in charge of a project, is something I have been ranting on about for ages. So great stuff, as is increasing time in post from 2 to 4 years. A full parliament is five years, so perhaps five years in post would be better than 4.
I still think getting a parliamentary committee to look at a project at the start, rather than waiting for it to go wrong, would also be a good step forward.
RE “hope the review comes out with a common sense answer, like, yes, Cyprus is essential”
- I am sure it will
- forgetting the fast interception boats, there are the radar/intel, land forces and air components there. They serve distinctively different purposes.
- the latest (first?) integrated ballistic missile defence exercise (read: Iran) took place along the axis from Romania to Israel, the installations further North were not even part of it (perhaps they are not complete yet?)
-now, put Cyprus on that map. Add the contribution asked from Europe part of NATO for the missile shield (nominal, compared to developing and building it).
- my *speculation* is that from the old jumping-point-for-intervention, the main role going forward will be a link in that missile defence chain, perhaps with some cost sharing (and structuring the forces there accordingly, which would be the minor part of the changes)
STV if Lord fcuking Ashcroft wants ti help the armed fixes perhaps he should pay income tax!!!
That bastard owes the treasury millions in avoided tax
Or of course he could always sell his collection of VC’s, not sure I like the idea of private collectors having VC’s
aaah bordon, did my HGV there, and they wondered why most of the course elected not stay there and commute in every day. Nothing wrong with the area joe, you just have to hand your morale in at the main gate as you enter!!
To answer joe about the training areas no-one knows, arborfield is still pencilled in to close (to make way for 3-5000 houses oh great)! However St athens has been shit canned so who knows!
(I refuse to acknowledge any wedgehead remarks made earlier!!!) lol
@ Phil Darley re Ashcroft
I don’t know. If you want to go after a tax dodging peer go after Lord Paul who not only fiddled expenses but also raided the pension pot of British steel workers. And didn’t support the member for Kirkcaldy’s leadership campaign?
Ashcroft may have not paid taxes but I am lead to believe he (or his company whatever) has paid for several school and university buildings. And you can’t call Crimestoppers a failure either. Doesn’t he give a few bob to the NSPCC too?
Don’t drink the BBC Kool Aid……..
I’ve no doubt we’ll keep a presence in cyprus, however i did a lion sun in 2002 and the 2 bases are huge, plus we were based at an old bloodhound missile site. Point i’m making is we have alot of real estate and also people 2 sites equals 2 schools, 2 naafis loads of LSSA family flight warrants etc etc. In this time of belt tightening, (well unless you’re an overseas dictator in which case this has been a good week to flick through the car brouchres) and losing a battalion there makes fiscal sense as all the attatched support goes as well. Maintaining the air base and runway is an obvious. One arguement against the resident inf is they’re always a company down as it supplies the RIC for the falklands (unless it’s changed since i left).
Suppose it depends on the brief DC has given lord ashcroft.
X I didn’t say he was the only tax dodging scumbag. He us one if many, but the sheer size
Of the money this thoroughly obnoxious individuals businesses have avoided paying here
And in Belize is staggering and us in no way come close to being compensated fir by his donations yor refer to. A decent business nun would pay his taxes AND support worthy causes. Which is what many honest people do!
He has no place in the this society he has simply used his wealth to buy privilege. Wealth he mat well not have if he paid taxes and operated within the spirit as well as the letter of the law!!!
@paul G Thanks for answering my queries, what you’ve said is making me, make more sense of the base and a couple other things, so thank you. I’m guessing for morale that if you’re assigned there you’d have to go Aldershot way for anything Army other than you’re day to day REME work. There’s not much facilities for enjoyment of life at the sites there, is there?
Yes East Hampshire’s not a bad area, actually most of it was/were Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and are now part of The South Downs National Park, but Bordon (and Whitehill) has many, many, many negatives. I know I lived there: very high benefit rates, high mental health rates, no heritage, 10 takeaways for a population of 10,000 or less, bottlenecked busy main road, CHAVs who actually did fire off guns in the woods, and no aesthetics.
So with what I’ve said maybe a relocation to MoD St Athan would be great, and also then, Hampshire gets an attempt at an Ecotown, more industrial estate and jobs and therefore more prosperity, which I hope everyone here agrees is a bloody brilliant thing.
@paul g Sorry I should’ve said I haven’t mistaken the guntoting CHAVs for soldiers at the firing ranges.