Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that in the last year, costs on the MOD’s 20 biggest equipment projects have increased by £1.7 billion and that these projects have been delayed by three months each on average. The problems on these projects show that the sensible principles of Smart Acquisition […]
This study assesses the financial assumptions underlying the Ministry of Defence’s 10-year Equipment Plan.
The Ministry of Defence programme to replace hundreds of different IT systems with a single, secure, high quality computer infrastructure is based on a sound rationale and convincing business case. According to a National Audit Office report issued today, the Defence Information Infrastructure Programme (DII) has delivered important benefits, but has run into implementation difficulties, […]
The changes to how the Ministry of Defence maintains and repairs Harrier and Tornado aircraft have reduced costs by a total of £1.4 billion over the last six years. Although availability of the aircraft temporarily declined during the transition period, availability targets for the Harrier are now being met and for the Tornado, where the […]
This landscape report aims to help Parliament better understand the complexities of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise by describing how the Ministry of Defence needs to bring together its programmes, including production of the new deterrent submarines, to provide a continuous at sea deterrent.
This report reviews whether the Ministry of Defence has an effective approach to developing the capability of its regular forces, and how it is adapting to meet the new challenges.
This briefing has been prepared for the Defence Committee of the House of Commons to provide an overview of the work and performance of the Ministry of Defence in the financial year 2009-10 and subsequent months.
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, told Parliament today that the Ministry of Defence has made considerable progress in developing new approaches to the management of its Research and Technology (R&T) programme to deliver better outcomes for Defence, but the Department could do more to get the full benefit from the money […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) does well to manage the difficult job of having housing available for Service personnel and their families when posted overseas. However, it needs to adopt a greater customer focus in its delivery of housing services overseas. It also […]
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, told Parliament today that the costs of compensation claims paid by the Ministry of Defence are on the increase and that more can be done to keep down the cost of handling claims and to improve the service to claimants. Compensation and legal costs have risen […]
We investigated the performance of the MoD’s military flying training system
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that Through-Life Management of the delivery of military capability is complex. It involves major change for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) and those doing business with it. The MoD has more to do to embed the Through-Life Management approach and realise the […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reporting today on the top 20 defence equipment projects in demonstration and manufacture, told Parliament that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) was expecting to meet the capability requirements of its customers, and difficulties on four projects predating the introduction of Smart Acquisition had been the primary […]
Equipment cannibalisation in the Royal Navy has doubled in the past 12 years. It can be effective to meet operational needs but can increase costs and create disruption.
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reporting today on the Major Projects Report 2002, told Parliament that the Ministry of Defence is showing a continued improvement in overall performance but that maintaining this will be the challenge. There are also encouraging signs that Smart Acquisition is resulting in innovative programme design and […]
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that although he had qualified his audit opinion on whether the Ministry of Defence’s Resource Accounts for 2001-02 presented a true and fair view, the Department had made significant improvements since 2000-01. And he reported that the Department continues to make good […]
The United Kingdom’s military operations in Iraq were a significant success and personnel and equipment performed impressively, Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today. However, as the Department has acknowledged, there were difficulties in ensuring that front line forces received the equipment and supplies that they needed. United Kingdom […]
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that although he had qualified his audit opinion on whether the Ministry of Defence’s Resource Accounts for 2002-03 presented a true and fair view, the Department had made further improvements since 2001-02. And he reported that the Department continues to make good […]
Sir John Bourn, the Head of the NAO, told Parliament today that Combat Identification enables the Armed Forces to improve combat effectiveness and minimise the risk of fratricide, which is the accidental destruction of friendly or allied forces (“friendly fire”). Historical research in the United States has shown that fratricide accounts for between ten and […]