Scottish independence: armed forces will be under-funded, says MoD
Report states £2.5bn proposed annual budget for Scottish Defence Force is too small and takes no account of startup costs
An independent Scotland will face an “immediate and pressing challenge” to set up its armed forces because its proposed budget is too small and poorly costed, the Ministry of Defence has alleged.
An analysis paper being published by Philip Hammond, the defence secretary on Tuesday will claim that a Scottish Defence Force (SDF) would be under-funded, under-equipped and badly structured with the £2.5bn annual budget being proposed by Alex Salmond, the first minister.
Warning that Salmond has taken no account of a new force’s startup costs, the MoD document says: “An independent Scottish state would face a very significant challenge to establish, man and equip its armed forces and wider defence and security structures.”
The MoD also challenges Salmond’s plans for an independent Scotland to automatically take control of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, which has four infantry battalions, Scots Guards and Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, and automatically transfer every Scot serving in the UK armed forces.
Although defence officials acknowledge there are Irish members of the British armed forces after Irish independence, it alludes to difficulties with citizenship for those Scottish service personnel in the armed forces who wanted to remain in the British army, RAF or Royal navy.
While the UK would negotiate with an independent Scotland on transferring bases, equipment and units to Scottish control, the report adds: “On personnel, this would present an extremely difficult challenge to overcome, drawing in citizenship considerations.”
The report continues: “The question of how separate armed forces for an independent Scottish state would be manned would have acute significance. An independent Scottish state would face an immediate and pressing challenge to establish armed forces capability, and supporting defence machinery.”
The first minister has made those regiments – the most readily identifiable Scottish fighting forces – the backbone of his proposed Scottish Defence Force of 15,000 military and civilian personnel. Salmond has also spoken of resurrecting old regiments that have been disbanded.
The MoD estimates that a force of 14,000 would leave the SDF with frontline combat forces of 4,650 personnel, once the essential supporting logistics, engineers, signals and artillery units are added. That excludes navy and air force personnel. The MoD works on the basis that only one third of its combat forces are on active duty at any time, theoretically leaving the SDF with 1,550 soldiers on active service at a time.
The Scottish government also insists that removing Trident from Scotland will free up £200m a year and allow the Clyde submarine base near Glasgow to become a combined naval and military headquarters. Alongside fishery and North Sea oil industry patrols, its navy and air force would chiefly help defend the north Atlantic and North Sea alongside Scandinavian forces within Nato.
But the MoD report, which is the latest in a series of UK government analysis papers attacking independence, warns that all these assets are UK assets and would be the subject of hard-fought negotiations.
The report …read more
