Briefing Paper: What the Government must do in Defence Procurement
The GOCO proposal for DE&S raises the question of what functions in defence are inherently governmental. On this, the UK may be moving in a different direction to the US
The UK government’s proposal to outsource more than 40 per cent of the MoD budget to private contractors – the so-called GOCO option for DE&S – is moving in the opposite direction to the US, whose experience of placing more procurement functions with private sector has resulted in higher rather than lower costs.
'What the Government must do in Defence Procurement' by John Louth and Trevor Taylor highlights the question of whether most aspects of defence procurement and contracting for equipment and support are fundamental government responsibilities that should not be passed to others.
The paper points out that in the US, defence acquisition is seen as core business for the government, with significant restrictions placed on what can be entrusted to the private sector.
About the Authors
Professor Trevor Taylor is a Professorial Research Fellow at RUSI. He teaches at Cranfield University.
Dr John Louth is a Senior Research Fellow and Director of Defence, Industries and Society at RUSI. He teaches at the University of Roehampton Business School.
WRITTEN BY
Trevor Taylor
Professorial Research Fellow
Defence, Industries and Society
