Max Hastings in today's "Times" - I'm not quite sure who would buy them - maybe the USMC
Finally, even with the fair wind blowing for the new British government, there is our own politics. If the Robertson review makes radical proposals, how far can these be implemented in the face of domestic pressures?
For instance: the two giant aircraft-carriers that our admirals insisted upon, and which Gordon Brown commissioned to provide employment in Scottish Labour constituencies, have proved an embarrassment. The misbegotten “Pacific tilt” in the 2019 defence review was conceived simply to justify these behemoths. We cannot afford a credible force of F-35s to fly off them. Manning has proved a nightmare. The ships are often broken. At a time when we need a larger fleet of smaller vessels, they consume a giant share of the Navy’s budget. We would be better off without them.
But does Starmer have the bottle to sell the carriers, which would prompt jingo outrage? I doubt it. Moreover, when Labour is seeking to market defence spending as an engine for growth, will it recognise that not only is our procurement system broken, but our domestic weapons manufacturers, notably BAE, have a lamentable record, especially as warship builders?