The UK’s Defence Industrial Strategy, DSEI, and the looming protests
Continuing its efforts to turn the UK defence sector into a driver for job creation and economic growth, the UK government has unveiled its new Defence Industrial Strategy amid a week of high tension and probable protests at the country’s leading military trade show.
Due to take place between 9-12 September, the 2025 iteration of the DSEI exhibition will be the largest ever with a near-23% increase in exhibitor space since the last edition, according to US pavilion organiser Kallman Worldwide.
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US presence at DSEI will number more than 200 companies, while Europe’s own leading primes and SMEs will proliferate across the 8,000m² of floor space. More than 600 UK companies, both those dedicated in defence and those looking to make inroads into the sector, will be on-site.
Israeli defence companies will also be present, although official government officials will not be permitted to attend, a move that has caused significant controversy.
Given the concentration of the global defence sector at the DSEI exhibition, it is unsurprising that the UK government opted to release its defence industrial strategy the same week, kicked off with the launch of a £250m ($337.7m) Defence Growth Deals fund.
The UK government says analysis from UK defence trade association ADS indicates a potential demand of up to 50,000 defence jobs by 2034/35.
Central to this is a planned increase of UK defence spending up to 2.6% of GDP by 2027, with “an ambition to hit 3% in the next Parliament”.
Doubts have been cast over the defence spending targets mooted by the UK, which includes adding the budget of the Single Intelligence Account, the fund used to run the country’s Mi5 and Mi6 spy agencies, and GCHQ.
Meanwhile, borrowing costs for UK bonds hit a 27-year high earlier in September 2025, making it more expensive for the UK government to loan money from international markets. As a result, public spending cuts or tax rises – or potentially both – are expected to be announced in November’s Autumn Statement.
Protests expected around DSEI
The convergence of global defence companies at DSEI will also serve as a catalyst for activist groups and campaigners, with the Campaign Against Arms Trade organising a series of events against what it terms the UK’s “complicity of the genocide” in Gaza.
This includes a call to “blockade” the opening day of DSEI on 9 September.
Similarly, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign has called for a “pots and pans” vigil on 10 September, calling for DSEI to be “cancelled entirely”.
The event has also drawn criticism from Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, who has previously called for it to be banned from the UK capital.
Defence companies in the UK, particularly those with links to Israel, have been previously targeted by some activist groups, including the now banned Palestine Action.
