John Healey should look towards Canada as a guide for Budget defence spending policy
The chancellor, John Healey, should look to Canada as a guide for Budget defence spending policy, say leading audit, tax and business advisory firm, Blick Rothenberg.
Melissa Thomas, a director at the firm, said: “Increased defence spending should not be viewed as a cost to the UK economy, but as an investment into high-value jobs, innovation and export growth. Canada is treating defence spend as an industrial strategy, the UK should do the same by ensuring defence procurement stimulates domestic innovation and private sector investment.”
She added: “Over the last twelve months Canada has announced a number of initiatives around increasing its defence spend and associated ‘defence tech’, such as the Regional Defence Investment Initiative. The UK should do the same by announcing tax incentives in the Autumn Budget to support dual-use technologies that have both commercial and defence applications, helping British businesses scale faster and access new international markets with similar areas of focus, like Canada. This could unlock the UK’s next generation of high-growth businesses.”
Melissa said: “The Budget needs to include tax policies that encourage investors to back innovative businesses in strategic sectors such as cyber security, quantum computing, space technology and advanced engineering. If the UK government wants Britain to lead in defence technology, it should strengthen incentives for research & development, capital investment and commercialisation of intellectual property.”
She added: “As Canada deepens its investment in defence technology, the UK has a prime opportunity to become its natural collaboration partner for AI, cyber security, advanced manufacturing and aerospace innovation.”
Melissa said: “Defence supply chains are becoming increasingly international. UK businesses that develop relationships with Canadian innovators today could be better positioned to access future procurement opportunities on both sides of the Atlantic.”