Defence Industry in a Global Gontext: Policy Implications for the United Kingdom

By Neil Latham
21 May 2004

The increasing size and international character of many defence companies and the growing development of dual use technologies for both military and civil purposes poses a number of important questions: does defence industry have a distinct identity; if so, what are its defining features; to what extent does a country need a defence industry; and how should governments interact with defence companies? By considering the contribution of defence industry to the delivery of national security in a number of selected countries, this paper seeks to throw light on these questions at a time when the UK government has recently published a defence industrial policy.

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