UK will not buy off-the-shelf from foreign companies, says NAD official
- Deputy director of UK Defence Innovation and head of technology transition at the National Armaments Directorate (NAD), James Gavin, said the government will not purchase commerical off the shelf systems from foreign companies
- However the UK will still pursue agreements with allies to jointly develop and procure equipment and platforms
- A cost breakdown of priority defence programmes will be published in the forthcoming Defence Investment Plan before the end of November 2025
A British defence procurement chief dismissed any prospect that the UK will buy off-the-shelf systems directly from foreign companies.
Speaking at the Future Armoured Vehicles Survivability conference in London on 19 November, James Gavin maintained that all activity with foreign suppliers will benefit the UK economy in turn through jobs, consistent with the new offset policy established in the Defence Industrial Strategy in early September.
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“I will not be funding something abroad which is bought off the shelf,” he stated with conviction, “full stop.”
But this does not wholly dismiss the UK’s exploration of emerging technology trends in the global defence industry or tapping into innovation derived from allies, Gavin assured, replying to a question posed by Army Technology.
“Certainly, the UK and European countries can’t all afford to invest in everything in [research and development] that eventually results in their viable products,” the NAD offical contended.
This is especially true given that, two years ago, the UK accounted for its largest deficit in the history of publishing the annual Equipment Plan: a shortfall just shy of £17bn ($22.2bn).
“We’ve got to spread out and co-invest with core partners,” he granted, pointing to strategic partnerships such as the trilateral AUKUS pact as a prominent example, or the Trinity House Agreement with Germany. In passing, Gavin then alluded to a significant international project currently in the works, hinting there is “a big intent to do similar [technology partnerships] with Nato in certain [unspecified] areas.”
Currently, the UK operate several platforms purchased off the shelf from abroad. Many of these are American-made, including the Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, Apache AH-64E attack helicopters, and MQ-9B Protector drones.
Others include the Swedish Archer 155mm howitzers which were rapidly procured off the shelf to replace the AS-90s.
