buglerbilly
02-07-10, 05:22 PM
(Source: ADS; issued July 1, 2010)
A|D|S, the UK’s AeroSpace, Defence and Security trade organisation today (Thursday) welcomed the speech given by the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, setting out the Government’s foreign policy intentions.
Rees Ward, Chief Executive of A|D|S, said:
“The Foreign Secretary’s speech is most welcome as a clear signal of the aims of the Government. It is especially encouraging to hear that the Government will create coherent policies across departments to boost our economy, our national security and our global trading links. The UK defence industry can be a strategic partner in delivering these objectives and we welcome the emphasis on overseas trade promotion in particular.
“As well as contributing to the Strategic Defence and Security Review our sector can also play a major role in defence diplomacy with allied nations around the world.”
Countries that the Foreign Secretary mentioned in his speech as targets for enhanced trade included Brazil, India and strategic regions such as Asia and the Middle East. These are key priority markets for the sectors that A|D|S represents, as reflected in the overseas offices that we have recently opened in India and the Middle East.
“Mr Hague is right to hail the achievements of the UK, especially our position as the sixth largest trading nation in the world, despite only having one per cent of the global population. In aerospace and defence terms we are Europe’s leader and second in the world behind only the US. This delivers major benefits to the UK economy and offers an opportunity for the Government to both boost this performance still further and harness that activity to deliver the aims in the Foreign Secretary’s speech.
“However, the Government’s desire to support defence exports does not necessarily chime with the ongoing decline in UK defence spending. Potential overseas customers will likely ask why they should buy UK equipment if our own Government is not doing so. A cut in defence spending would in effect be a cut in our economic recovery with job losses at home and export opportunities missed abroad. We therefore look to the Government’s Strategic Defence and Security Review to be defined by the Government’s foreign, economic and national security polices rather than simply being a cost-cutting exercise.”
The UK defence industry employs 300,000 people across all regions of the UK and is worth over £35 billion per year to the British economy. Average annual exports are worth over £5 billion per year and the UK is number one in Europe, second only to the US globally, in defence with a 21 per cent market share of global defence exports.
A|D|S is the trade organisation advancing UK AeroSpace, Defence and Security industries with Farnborough International Limited as a wholly-owned subsidiary. A|D|S also encompasses the British Aviation Group (BAG). It is formed from the merger of the Association of Police and Public Security Suppliers (APPSS), the Defence Manufacturers Association (DMA) and the Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC).
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A|D|S, the UK’s AeroSpace, Defence and Security trade organisation today (Thursday) welcomed the speech given by the Foreign Secretary, William Hague, setting out the Government’s foreign policy intentions.
Rees Ward, Chief Executive of A|D|S, said:
“The Foreign Secretary’s speech is most welcome as a clear signal of the aims of the Government. It is especially encouraging to hear that the Government will create coherent policies across departments to boost our economy, our national security and our global trading links. The UK defence industry can be a strategic partner in delivering these objectives and we welcome the emphasis on overseas trade promotion in particular.
“As well as contributing to the Strategic Defence and Security Review our sector can also play a major role in defence diplomacy with allied nations around the world.”
Countries that the Foreign Secretary mentioned in his speech as targets for enhanced trade included Brazil, India and strategic regions such as Asia and the Middle East. These are key priority markets for the sectors that A|D|S represents, as reflected in the overseas offices that we have recently opened in India and the Middle East.
“Mr Hague is right to hail the achievements of the UK, especially our position as the sixth largest trading nation in the world, despite only having one per cent of the global population. In aerospace and defence terms we are Europe’s leader and second in the world behind only the US. This delivers major benefits to the UK economy and offers an opportunity for the Government to both boost this performance still further and harness that activity to deliver the aims in the Foreign Secretary’s speech.
“However, the Government’s desire to support defence exports does not necessarily chime with the ongoing decline in UK defence spending. Potential overseas customers will likely ask why they should buy UK equipment if our own Government is not doing so. A cut in defence spending would in effect be a cut in our economic recovery with job losses at home and export opportunities missed abroad. We therefore look to the Government’s Strategic Defence and Security Review to be defined by the Government’s foreign, economic and national security polices rather than simply being a cost-cutting exercise.”
The UK defence industry employs 300,000 people across all regions of the UK and is worth over £35 billion per year to the British economy. Average annual exports are worth over £5 billion per year and the UK is number one in Europe, second only to the US globally, in defence with a 21 per cent market share of global defence exports.
A|D|S is the trade organisation advancing UK AeroSpace, Defence and Security industries with Farnborough International Limited as a wholly-owned subsidiary. A|D|S also encompasses the British Aviation Group (BAG). It is formed from the merger of the Association of Police and Public Security Suppliers (APPSS), the Defence Manufacturers Association (DMA) and the Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC).
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