UK military R & D - Council for Science and Society

Half the money spent by the British government on research and development goes to the Ministry of Defence. Britain allocates a far higher percentage of its gross domestic product to defence R&D than any other major R&D spender in the Western world apart from the USA. Why is Britain - not a particularly rich nation - so far out of line? How do we decide which programmes to support? Do we get good value for money? And how does this huge military investment affect our industrial competitiveness? These questions are examined in this report by the CSS. It argues that Britain's defence R&D spending is excessive in relation to the country's economic status, and a hangover from an imperial past. There is a need for sharper choices to be made between self-suffiency in the design and development of weapons, and the alternatives of international collaboration, purchase from abroad, or manufacture under licence. One option considered in the report is for Britain to abandon a major military role altogether, thus eliminating the need for R&D. But one `solution' that should be avoided is to make further major economies in our defence research establishments.