Andy Start (National Armaments Director) speech at DSEI

DSEI is a showcase for British industry and British ingenuity.

"Good morning and welcome to Day 2 of DSEI UK 2025.

The challenge of following our minister is that I am not going to have the energy or excitement he had, but I will do my best.

DSEI is always a huge event in the defence calendar, bringing together delegations from over 160 governments with our industry from around the globe.

It's a powerful moment for us to step back and look at where we stand as a collective endeavor keeping the world safe, driving economic growth for the benefit of all its citizens.

My personal reflection, which I'll set out over the next quarter of an hour, is that despite the accelerating scale and the challenges that we face in the two years since we last stood here, we have achieved real momentum together, and if we face the tough choices ahead, I think we have really good reasons to be optimistic.

Last week, I co chaired the 18th NAD-level Ukraine Defence Contact Group. We discussed the intensity of the conflict and the extraordinary pace of technological evolution.

The horrific events that followed February 2022 are what happens when violent extremism and opportunism goes undeterred, and when aggression goes unchecked.

And Ukraine is just one, although perhaps the most significant example of the increasing threats we've seen over the last few years since we were last here together.

We operate in a world today that is more conflicted, where a way of life is more under threat than any time in a generation.

But in the years since, we have got proof of what can be done when nations around the world line up behind an ally to provide it with the martial strength and economic support that will keep it in the fight.

This has required staggering bravery by the Ukrainian people, an acceleration in the cycles of development and continued support from global allies.

We have seen multiple generations of technology, massive increases in integration and autonomy.

And this week's ministerial UDCG saw over 50 nations, the EU and NATO, show their steadfast support for Ukraine.

That support in itself, is a huge reason for optimism. It shows that when we have some partnership in alliance, amplifying and supporting each other's strengths, we've proven that we are far more than the sum of our parts.

International cooperation is the first reason for us to be optimistic for the future.

I see the second reason as increased commitment, in particular, the most positive trajectory of international defence financial commitments since the 1950s.

Over the last four years, EU member states' defense expenditure has risen by more than 30%, all 32 nations are now over 2% adding a further €100 billion to make up €426 billion of expenditure by 2027.

European nations are committed to 5% of GDP spent on defense, with 3.5% on core defense.

And here in the UK, we've already risen to 2.38% of GDP. We're on a path to 2.6 by 2027, and 3% by the next parliament.

So based on current projections, by 2035, we will be spending well over 100 billion pounds a year on defense here in this country, compared to about £60 billion today.

Now to meet this demand, it's vital that allied nations turn to their defence industrial bases.

Inevitably, that will take time, and those of us who have strong existing defence industries must lean into them.

In the meantime, there will be extraordinary opportunities for existing defence industries to partner and to export.

The UK alone has a pipeline of £100 billion of opportunity for export, and we therefore set a goal of doubling our defense exports from 14 billion pounds a year to £28 billion by 2035.

Put all of that lot together, it adds up to NATO and our like-minded allies becoming hugely more capable over the next decade, strengthening our collective security.

It also means that defence will be one of the most attractive investment markets with phenomenal opportunities for growth.

That makes this a great place to be right now, and we must step up and maximize that opportunity together.

We must make the most of that investment, and that will only happen if we collaborate rather than duplicate, if we disrupt our own technology rather than resting on our laurels, and if we drive up productivity to meet and reshape what it means to be world class.

The pace through which we've collectively been going after that has been phenomenal.

Today, we are already more integrated, more interoperable, better trained and more capable of operating than we have been for decades.

And we must keep working to reduce the number of competing systems across NATO and keep striving for more co-design, co-development and co-delivery.

What's exciting is just how much you can see this is being embraced all around you. At a reception in the NATO conference of NADs and in our alliance-wide industrial plans.

In AUKUS, in the Joint Expeditionary Force, in the Lancaster house bilateral with France and the Trinity house bilateral with Germany, and so many more.

You can feel that in the cooperation here at DSEI.

You can see that in the number of National Armaments Directors standing around you and here at the show.

But amid that optimism, I don't want to pretend there are not hard choices to be made.

I think, as most of you know, I'm an industry man, and that means I'm not a hype man. So I won't sugar coat that there are tough choices to be made about how we pivot defense to the future.

The scale and speed of threat evolution means that we have to adapt. Like streaming services replacing video rental, we must disrupt our own technology and do so at an increasing pace.

We have to get comfortable with the fact that once proven capabilities are no longer optimal.

We need to accept that our competitors' productivity is dramatically improving. Nations and companies that are fully embracing digital acquisition, digital design, AI, digital twins, new manufacturing technology, robotization will make the rest irrelevant.

What we see in Formula One and in the automotive industry, needs to become commonplace within defence.

The good news is we can see what we need to do.

The scale of innovation here at the show all around us is mind blowing, and the tools and techniques for the future are available from the companies here in the stands around you as a partnership, we must embrace that opportunity.

Now I've spoken so far about the threats we face and my optimism about what we're doing as an international community. But I'm a UK NAD, and I'd like to speak about my level of optimism and the level of momentum that I have here, specifically in the UK, and that starts with the quality of our national strategic thinking by harnessing the collaborative efforts of government, military, industry, academia and the unions.

We have produced a genuinely compelling strategic thinking in the Strategic Defense Review, it sets a vision for the UK to be a leading tech enabled defence power with an integrated force that deters, fights and wins through constant innovation at wartime pace.

I hope you'll agree in the context we've discussed so far, that's got to be right.

And on Monday, you heard from the minister who's just spoken in the house of our new Defence Industrial Strategy, or DIS.

Having been involved in its production, I'm biased, but I think it's a really robust piece of work. It sets out how we'll deliver the vision for the SDR in a way that drives increased collaboration with allies at the same time as driving strong industrial and economic growth throughout the UK.

This is a plan to make defence an engine for growth and to back British based business. The strategy sets out practical measures to support our defence industry, to increase investment and drive up R&D and innovation and to make sure our industrial base grows to be as resilient as possible.

It's a plan for how we'll hard wire innovation and creativity into defence and harness emerging tech like AI and quantum as well as fuel use and clean tech.

It sets out our plans to make it far easier for companies new to defence to work with us, and that includes increasing SME participation through a dedicated Defense Office for Small Business Growth.

And to meet growing demand, we will need dramatically more skills, because defence is only as strong as the people who work within it.

It commits to £182 million in a comprehensive skills package, including investing in Defence Technical Expert Colleges, helping to make sure that we execute the DIS at pace.

Not only a minister who clearly has passion and energy, but also we're fortunate enough to have the support of the Defence Industrial Joint Council, which meets the second time this afternoon.

So I do recommend you all read the DIS. It's an approach that can be replicated internationally, and it's something that I've discussed with many National Armaments Directors already this week.

Delivering the radical shift in the vision laid out in the SDR and DIS would not be possible without equally radical changes across the UK defence ecosystem.

Right now, the largest program of transformation, integration and investment into defence that any government has made for 50 years is in full swing.

As part of these widespread reforms, a year ago, our Defence Secretary, John Healy, asked me to help implement his vision for change, to take up a new post with the aim of corralling defensive development, procurement and support into a single system that's fit for purpose.

And six months ago, I stepped up into the new interim role of National Armaments Director to establish and lay the groundwork for the positions to follow.

Today, we have real momentum. The NAD group is 27,000 people strong. It brings together experts in technology, in infrastructure, acquisition, international collaboration and more to deliver a complete innovation, procurement and support lifecycle,

To build and sustain the industrial base and ensuring that new capabilities meet the needs of our Armed Forces, and are optimised for the export market.

To seize that opportunity to double UK exports that I spoke about earlier, we have drawn together the resources previously spread across the Defence and Trade ministries to create the International Collaboration & Exports team (more excitingly known as ICE).

This includes, for the first time a new single office for defence exports. And whilst it's only just come together, ICE is already delivering increased coherence and speed in our international agreements. 

You can see that in their leadership of this fantastic show and in their coordination of our recent £10 billion defence partnership with Norway, which includes the acquisition of 5 new Type 26 frigates.

 The NAD Group is already ensuring that what UK defence buys pivots to the future. Today, instead of a passive response to requirements specs, we receive problem statements and engage industry to determine the most innovative solutions to meet UK front-line and export needs.

And we are challenging conventional wisdom. Where there are legacy platforms that are no longer relevant, we are clear-eyed about ending our investment in them.

We will be discerning about which of the new innovative technologies and capabilities we focus on and choose to scale up, knowing that not every investment can become a unicorn, although some can.

You will see that we faced this essential pivot as part of the Defence Investment Plan, which we're actively working on as we speak.

The plan will give our industry partners greater clarity about defence spending intentions than in many years, helping them plan and invest in the UK PLC with surety and with confidence.

I'd be happy to discuss the huge changes we have already made and the journey we are on in Q&A. If neither of us get to it, we have, for the first time, a combined NAD group stand here at DSEI, and my team will be delighted to talk to you.

So in conclusion, we have come a huge way in the last two years since we were last together, there is a pace and an energy in defence that is unlike anything I have witnessed.

Thank you to everybody across defence for your hard work, for your passion and for your dedication. We have a long journey ahead of us, but greater collaboration with our industry and with our international partners standing behind us, I know we can deliver the safety and prosperity for our people and our nation.

And whilst the threats are really cited, the opportunities for growth are unprecedented.

Thanks very much."