The source said Johnson wanted “honest, clear thinking” and a clearing out of obsolete kit, a changing of working patterns and modernising all the forces “properly” to save money.
The second half of the sentence seems at odds with his desire for ‘honest, clear thinking’. To modernize the armed forces having cleared out ‘obsolete kit’ would imply replacing it with new (expensive) kit or does ‘modernize’ mean fewer regulars and tiny numbers of advanced equipment?