Modern military advantage is increasingly defined by speed, adaptability, and the ability to scale production rapidly. Yet as warfare accelerates into the drone age—seen most starkly in Ukraine—the UK was mired in delays to the long-awaited Defence Investment Plan (DIP), intended to underpin delivery of the Strategic Defence Review (SDR) 2025. In light of the plan being published ahead of the NATO summit today, some critics argue that the delay has caused significant harm, reflecting a broader issue in defence: whether the UK’s procurement and industrial systems are sufficiently enabled to deliver the capabilities required for modern warfare. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) itself has acknowledged the pressure, with National Armaments Director Rupert Pearce noting that “there are some things we are waiting for the DIP to do, and that delay is costing people… Time is money in procurement.” This tension between strategic ambition, funding and implementation is feeding wider unease about na...