Defence spending ‘puts price above UK jobs’
A new report from the specialists’ Prospect trade union sets out how the Ministry of Defence is failing to enforce a so-called “Social Value Test” (SVT) when awarding government contracts.
The union explains that the SVT is supposed to ensure maximum benefit for UK communities in any government expenditure, and is meant to be a key plank of its levelling up agenda.
Its report shows that this isn’t working as intended, as the added weight given to headline price when tendering means that other considerations, such as how many UK jobs will be supported, rarely figure. To illustrate, it gives an example from 2020, when the MoD announced the UK would equip its new Apache helicopters with missiles made in the US by Lockheed Martin, despite a competitive bid from a British firm that employs 4,000 workers.
The report suggests a number of changes be applied to the SVT, including giving more weight to non-price considerations, and measuring tenders against indicators such as climate, jobs, skills, and local investment.