The Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy

The Prime Minister has today launched the Integrated Review (IR) including the government’s Strategic Framework, which details the overarching national security and international policy objectives to 2025. The Strategic Framework focuses on the following four themes:

1. Sustaining Strategic Advantage through Science and Technology
2. Shaping the open international order of the future
3. Strengthening security and defence at home and overseas
4. Building resilience at home and overseas

Alongside these themes, the IR will bring to bear new capabilities, including the Counter Terrorism Operations Centre and the National Cyber Force, and will integrate government’s resources to better combat global challenges. At the heart of the IR is an increased commitment to security and resilience, so that the UK is protected against existing and emerging threats out to 2030. 

Responding to the publication of the Integrated Review, techUK’s CEO Julian David commented:

“Today’s announcement by the Prime Minister marks a seismic shift in the UK’s approach to foreign policy, defence and national security. For techUK and our members, the emphasis on technology as a strategic enabler is welcome, particularly the focus on the cutting-edge technologies of artificial intelligence, cyber security, and space-based capabilities. This, together with the wholesale modernisation of UK defence capabilities and substantial uplift in UK spending on research and development, will encourage greater collaboration between government and the technology industry to deliver on the review’s ambitions.

“techUK also welcomes the review’s commitment to climate change and preserving biodiversity as the primary international priority, particularly ahead of the UK’s hosting of COP26 later this year. Looking ahead, and with the imminent publication of the Defence Command Paper and Defence & Security Industrial Strategy, techUK and our members remain committed to working with our partners across government to deliver on ambitions of the Integrated Review.”

Below techUK looks at the key themes of the IR and also highlights the specific measures within Spending Review 2020 (SR 2020) that support the delivery of the Strategic Framework. 

1. Sustaining strategic advantage through science and technology

The IR incorporates Science & Technology (S&T) as an integral element of the UK’s national security and international policy, fortifying the UK as a global S&T and responsible cyber power. The IR suggests that S&T will be essential in gaining economic, political and security advantages and will drive prosperity at home and progress towards the other three objectives.

As part of this the government will aim to create a thriving S&T ecosystem and ensure that the UK’s successful research base translates into influence over critical and emerging technologies. The government will adopt an own-collaborate-access framework to guide government activity in priority areas of S&T, including AI, quantum, and engineering biology. It also requires strategic choices and decisions by the government both on S&T priorities and how the UK uses its national S&T capability in support of wider policy goals.

The IR also aims to cement the UK’s position as a responsible and democratic cyber power, able to protect and promote the nation’s interests in, and through, cyber-space. This will aim to build on initiatives over the past decade which have established the UK as a cyber power, building cutting-edge capabilities which will be a fundamental component of strategic advantage through S&T.

Priority actions to build this S&T base are as follows:

• Increasing economy-wide investment in R&D to 2.4% of GDP by 2027;
• Improving and accelerating the pull-through from research to commercialisation;
• Protecting intellectual property and sensitive research through the Trusted Research programme;
• Establishing new S&T horizon-scanning capabilities within government;
• Investing at least £6.6bn of defence funding in advanced and next-generation R&D to deliver a military edge in areas including space, energy weapons and high speed missiles;

Priority actions for the new cyber strategy in 2021 will be:

• Strengthening the UK’s cyber ecosystem, enabling a whole-of-nation approach to cyber and deepening partnerships between government, academia, and industry;
• Building a resilient and prosperous digital UK;
• Taking the lead in technologies vital to cyber power, such as microprocessors, secure systems design, quantum technology and new form of data transmission;
• Promoting a free, open peaceful and secure cyberspace;
• Detecting, disrupting and deterring adversaries through a new National Cyber Force.

Spending Review 2020 Commitments

2. Shaping the open international order of the future

The UK will use its convening power to work with partners, to reinvigorate the international system and to ensure that open societies can flourish as we move into the digital age. The UK will seek to reinforce and renew existing pillars of the international order and to establish norms in the future frontiers of cyberspace, emerging technology, data, and space.

At this global level, the UK has three main aims:

• Support open societies and defend human rights
• Shape an open, resilient global economy
• Shape the international order as it develops its future frontiers

Additionally, the UK wants to protect an interoperable global internet for future generations, protecting the right for all to share information and to communicate freely. As part of this move, the UK is establishing a new approach to governing digital technologies, which drives inclusive and dynamic growth across the whole society.

Spending Review 2020 Commitments

3. Strengthening security and defence at home and overseas

The UK will work with allies and partners to address challenges to our security in the physical world and online.

The IR notes that state threats to the UK are growing and diversifying as systemic competition intensifies, and that consequently, responding to state threats can no longer be viewed as a narrow national security or defence agenda.

To bolster collective security with allies worldwide, the UK Government’s priority actions will be:

• Reaffirming the UK’s commitment to leadership in NATO, supporting its adaption to threats above and below the threshold of war under international law;
• Increasing the UK’s defence budget by over £24bn over the next four years and remaining the largest European spender on defence;
• Improving interoperability with our Euro-Atlantic allies;
• Modernising the UK armed forces – which will be set out further in the Defence Command Paper – to prioritise development and integration of new technologies such as high-tech warfighting and a digital backbone;
• Improve our ability to manage and de-escalate a multi-domain crisis;

Spending Review 2020 Commitments

4. Building resilience at home and overseas

The UK will place greater emphasis on resilience, recognising that it is not possible to predict or prevent every risk to security and prosperity. The UK will improve its ability to anticipate, prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from risks and will prioritise efforts to tackle climate change and biodiversity.

Under the national resilience strategy, which will be developed in 2021, priority actions will be:

• Establishing a ‘whole-of-society’ approach to resilience;
• Considering threats and hazards in the round to build national resilience across the diverse range of risks facing the UK;
• Developing more capabilities (people, skills and equipment) that can be used across a range of scenarios;

Finally, tackling climate change and biodiversity loss will be the UK’s international priority through COP26 and beyond. The government’s priority actions will be:

• Accelerating the UK’s transition to net-zero by 2050;
• Accelerating the global transition to net zero;
• Strengthening adaption to the effects of climate change that cannot be prevented or reversed;
• Reversing biodiversity loss by 2030 ;
• Investing in nature and a ‘nature-positive’ economy;

Spending Review 2020 Commitments

techUK will be providing more detailed analysis following the release of the Defence Command Paper and the Defence & Security Industrial Strategy later this month.

The full Integrated Review can be read here: Global Britain in a competitive age (publishing.service.gov.uk)