UK MoD confirms SME Action Plan to follow DIP

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed that its upcoming SME Action Plan will be released following the publication of the overdue Defence Investment Plan (DIP). 

“We are committed to publishing an ambitious SME action plan, alongside a direct spending target, once the Defence Investment Plan is finalised,” the MoD said in a one-pager released on 24 March. 

The plan will deal with some of the “silly rules” that present barriers to SME participation in defence, Tim Ketton-Locke, Director of the MoD’s new Defence Office for Small Business Growth (DOSBG) said two days later at the DPRTE event in Farnborough. 

Beyond the SME Action Plan, the one-pager also lists some of the ongoing changes to MoD procurement and strategy impacting SMEs, following the release of the Strategic Defence Review. These include: 

• The publishing of the Defence Industrial Strategy  
• Appointment of the National Armaments Director  
• Establishment of the Defence Industrial Joint Council
• The publishing of the SME Commercial Pathway  

In further recognising the financial pressures on smaller companies, the one-pager also highlights the Government’s GBP4 billion commitment to increase access to finance for entrepreneurs in all sectors.  

The statement says this is to celebrate and champion those who are seeking to start new businesses.  

This sector-generic initiative coincides with the establishment of a new Business Growth Service within the Department of Business and Trade to “streamline” digital support.  

Meanwhile, for defence, the new DOSBG is becoming the primary hub for SME support, recognising the unique challenges of operating in the sector.   

Many of its components have now stood-up, following a trial phase involving consultations with SMEs.