The National Security Strategy published today, 24 June, has hinted at future commercial opportunities for the civil engineering sector worth up to roughly £42.8bn.
The 55-page document was launched on the first day of a critical Nato summit where member states are expected to commit to increasing their defence spending to 5% of GDP (gross domestic product).
Nato had previously recommended its members spend 2% of GDP on defence, but the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, plus ongoing tensions with China, mean the alliance is seeking to bolster its military position.
In his foreword to the National Security Strategy, Prime Minister Kier Starmer said: “Since coming to office, this government has responded to the generationally high threats to our security with the biggest sustained investment in our defence since the Cold War.
“Yet it is also clear that to keep up with our adversaries and strengthen the NATO alliance, we must go further still.
“That is why, as part of this strategy, we make a historic commitment to spend 5% of our GDP on national security by 2035.”
Introducing a statement about the strategy to the House of Commons, the Chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden said: “Today the Prime Minister attends the opening day of the Nato summit.
“That summit is expected to agree to a new commitment to grow spending on national security to 5% of GDP by 2035—to be made up by a projected split of 3.5% on core defence spending and 1.5% on broader resilience and security spending.”
It is understood that the 1.5% on “broader resilience and security spending” will cover infrastructure that is associated with military expansion, which could include new or upgraded transport and utility networks.
Total UK GDP was £2,851bn in 2024, meaning 1.5% of UK GDP is approximately £42.8bn.
In his foreword, Starmer added: “We should view this as an opportunity. I have long argued that issues like energy security are vital for our national security.
“Meanwhile investment in our wider economic resilience is clearly a crucial component of our defence, as well as our mission to deliver growth that improves the living standards of the British people.”
He also said: “We can unleash a ‘defence dividend’ that will renew industrial communities the length and breadth of our country. We can generate the jobs, growth and wages we need to bring the country together.”
Improving the resilience of critical national infrastructure
Critical national infrastructure (CNI) includes everything from the rail network, the strategic road network, ports, airports, sewers and pipelines, the electricity transmission and distribution grids, power plants, and wastewater treatment works.
The strategy said that threats to critical national infrastructure (CNI) are increasing.
It said: “Critical national infrastructure – including undersea cables, energy pipelines, transportation and logistics hubs – will continue to be a target. It may become more difficult to identify hostile state activity as they make use of terrorist and criminal groups as their proxies.
“Our reliance on data centres and other forms of digital infrastructure will also increase vulnerabilities to cyber attack.”
The strategy said the UK Government would “roll out a series of new measures to strengthen our borders, defend our territory and enhance the resilience of our critical national infrastructure (CNI), ranging from enhanced defence of our island territory to stronger upstream measures and cyber capabilities”.
The Royal Navy has been given the task of “leading and coordinating role in securing undersea infrastructure”, the document added.
The government also said that its plans for “Home Defence” would “focus on the protection of critical national infrastructure and countering sabotage during a crisis (potentially modelled on the Reserves).
“We will also run annual National Exercises in order to test our whole-of-society preparedness.”
Security experts recently told NCE that the idea of having a voluntary home guard to protect CNI is “fanciful”.
Government implies SMRs will be used to boost AI capacity
The strategy said the government would ensure the UK builds “an asymmetric advantage in AI [artificial intelligence]”.
Later in the section on AI, it said: “Through the investment of £2.5bn in next generation nuclear technologies, we will also support the UK to take advantage of the potential of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors”.
Industry experts have previously told NCE they believe that the UK is poised to follow the trend of plans for privately-financed SMRs to power AI data centres.
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