All that glitters is not gold for MoD
The major multi-year funding injection announced by the UK government in November 2020 appears attractive — but in fact it lays bare a dilemma at the heart of the MoD.
The UK MoD enters 2021 having won a significant victory in its battles with the Treasury. Prime Minister Boris Johnson firmly aligned himself with Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace in November, by agreeing a multi-year funding settlement worth £16.5 billion.
This represents a marked change in fortunes for the MoD, which had probably been expecting substantial cuts — or at best no growth — to its budget. The wider decision by the government to delay its multi-year cross Whitehall spending review was also seen as a bad omen. It seemed to indicate that at best the MoD
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