The Conservative government left office with just two major
defence projects – 4% of the total - running on time and on
budget, new figures have revealed.
According to a new report covering the last year of the Tory
government, the Conservatives' disastrous final year in power
also saw an increase in ‘red-rated' projects from five to eight:
an increase of 60%.
The minister who oversaw this failure was , who has since been
promoted by to Shadow Secretary of State
for Defence.
Red-rated projects contain ‘major issues with project definition,
schedule, budget, quality…which at this stage do not appear to be
manageable or resolvable'. The Infrastructure and Projects
Authority report, published this morning, shows that disastrous
Tory mismanagement of major defence programmes left just two
projects on time and on budget.
Of the 52 major defence projects included in the previous 2022-23
list, 10% were red-rated. The 2023-24 list, which covers only the
Tory period in office, 16% were red-rated.
The National Audit Office found a £17bn black hole in the
Ministry of Defence equipment plan under the Conservatives,
whilst in 2023 the Commons Defence Committee declared defence
procurement was ‘clearly broken' under the previous government.
Since the General Election, the new Labour Government has
launched the biggest defence reform programme in 50 years, with
– Labour's Secretary of State
for Defence - leading the reforms to fix procurement and create a
stronger defence centre, delivering value for money and better
outcomes for the Armed Forces.
, now a shadow defence
minister, led the Defence Committee's inquiry which found the
procurement system ‘highly bureaucratic, overly stratified, far
too ponderous, with an inconsistent approach to safety' and ‘very
poor accountability'. Francois himself called the system
‘dysfunctional'.
The minister in charge of Defence Procurement at the time of the
damning report was . As Shadow Defence
Secretary, he now serves as Francois's boss.
A Labour Party spokesperson said:
“This report lays bare how 14 years of Tory mismanagement left
major defence programmes in disarray. The Tories hollowed out our
Armed Forces, wasted billions and bungled vital projects. Their
credibility on defence is shot to bits.
“This Labour Government is working night and day to fix the
broken procurement system we inherited, reform defence and get a
grip on Tory delays and overspends.
“We will leave no stone unturned to expose Tory
failures, get value for money for taxpayers and fix the
foundations of Britain's defence.”
Ends
Notes:
https://news.sky.com/story/ministry-of-defence-equipment-plan-has-17bn-blackhole-says-spending-watchdog-13022457
Of the 52 defence projects in the 2022-23 Government Major
Projects Portfolio, 5 were rated as Red, 41 as Amber and only 2
as Green, with 3 exempt: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64c91eaed8b1a71e86b05df3/IPA-Annual-report-2022-2023.pdf.pdf
Of the 49 defence programmes included in the 2023-24 edition, 8
are now rated red (a 60% increase), 36 amber and only 2 green,
with 3 exempt. This means that only 4% are green. Since 2022-23
there has been an increase in red-rated programmes from 5 to 8.
This is a 60% increase: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67863b593a9388161c5d2379/IPA_Annual_Report_2023-24.pdf
Defence Committee publishes highly critical report on UK defence
procurement: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/343/defence-subcommittee/news/196513/defence-committee-publishes-highly-critical-report-on-uk-defence-procurement/
Major defence reforms launched, with new National Armaments
Director to tackle waste and boost industry: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/major-defence-reforms-launched-with-new-national-armaments-director-to-tackle-waste-and-boost-industry
