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Boris Johnson’s long-awaited review of Britain’s defense strategy will be released on Monday, when the prime minister sells it domestically as a boost to the UK economy and union between the four nations.
The Integrated Review, commissioned more than a year ago, promises to “strengthen the UK’s core industrial base” and outline plans to expand manufacturing and create jobs outside London.
In a sign that the prime minister is trying to use the strategy to help strengthen the union, it will include plans to build ships in Scotland, armored vehicles in Wales and satellites in Northern Ireland.
A new National Cyber Security Force headquarters will be established in the north of England, along with shopping malls in Wales and Northern Ireland, and an additional 500 employees will be added to the team at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office based in East Kilbride.
Johnson emphasized that foreign policy reform was based on “who we are as a country: our values, our strengths and, most importantly, our people.”
He added: “Our international ambitions must start at home and, through the Integrated Review, we will drive investment back into our communities, ensuring the UK is at the forefront of innovation and creating a whole country that fits a more competitive situation. world.”
Last week, The Guardian revealed the most significant details of the review, which will see Britain shift its international attention to the Indo-Pacific region in an attempt to create a democratic counterweight for China.
Critics argue that the UK lacks the strength to have significant influence in the Far East and, while defense capital spending increased substantially in November, aid budgets have been cut and pressure on US budgets. defense revenue continues.
While ministers have announced plans to cut international development spending, a government source told The Guardian that the integrated review will include a commitment to the 0.7% of GDP target, a move that has likely been made to appeal to conservative supporters who oppose the cut by showing that it is only intended to be temporary.
General Sir Patrick Sanders, head of UK Strategic Command, said the country is “handing over the strategic initiative to our rivals” such as Russia and China and they are “gaining a decisive advantage in the military technologies of the era of the information”.
Writing in the Times, Sanders said the result had been a “succession of strategic surprises, the erosion of strategic advantage and the loss of initiative,” and called for the revision to offer a “more modern deterrent to our nation.”
When released, the document will be an important step for Johnson to articulate what the “global Britain” he has called for means and how he plans to forge it in the immediate aftermath of Brexit and over the next decade.
The government is also announcing a new transportation strategy that it says will see hundreds of miles of new bus lanes created, fares with daily price caps introduced, and more services at night and on weekends.
It is committed to ending sales of new diesel buses and has launched a consultation on the end date. They will be replaced by 4,000 new British-built electric or hydrogen buses.
But Labor said the strategy “offers nothing for those seeking a bold vision to reverse the millions of miles of lost bus routes across the country.”
