The defence sector is one of Scotland’s most controversial industries, and regularly lobbies ministers and MSPs.
As part of our Who Runs Scotland series, The Ferret has looked at the sector and its major players
We found that arms firms have held 99 meetings with MSPs since the last election.
An estimated 13,250 people are employed by Scotland’s defence sector and with defence now an urgent priority for the UK Government – due to the perceived threat from Russia – that number will likely increase.
A trade body called ADS Group Scotland promotes the defence sector (as well as aerospace, defence, naval and security) to policymakers at Holyrood and Westminster. In 2022, the sector had a £7.3bn turnover and employed 33,500 people directly.
Defence is reserved to Westminster and the Ministry of Defence is responsible for defence contracts. But the Scottish Government can award grants to arms firms for projects in Scotland, via its business agency Scottish Enterprise.
ADS has 1400 members in the UK. Out of the 19 organisations that form ADS Scotland’s council, 13 are headquartered abroad or in England.
Its Scotland council also includes three Scottish academic institutions: St Andrews University; Strathclyde University and Ayrshire College.
We previously revealed that five private companies, who employ around three quarters of the arms workforce in the arms industry, had thousands of closed door meetings with the UK Government between 2011 and 2020.
The access at Westminster given to BAE Systems, Leonardo, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon (now RTX) and Thales, amounted to 2217 meetings with the UK Government. including 40 when representatives from the prime minister’s office were present, lasting a collective 58 hours.
We also found that 87 people who worked for one of these five firms had also worked for the UK Government, making them so-called ‘revolving door’ employees.
But who are these arms firms who exert influence in Scotland?
Leonardo
The Italian multinational Leonardo builds avionics technology and employs over 2000 people in Edinburgh. It is a major manufacturer of radars, lasers and infrared countermeasure systems for helicopters and aircraft. Leonardo is on the ADS Scotland Council.
RTX (formerly Raytheon Technologies)
RTX is a US arms giant that employs 1,900 people in Scotland. Raytheon makes electronics systems for smart bombs in Glenrothes, Fife, and anti-drone technology in Livingston. RTX is on the ADS Scotland Council.
Thales
The French arms multinational employs 780 people in Glasgow and Rosyth. Thales Glasgow facility has been the sole supplier of periscopes to the Royal Navy since the First World War. It has a £169m contract to provide periscopes for the new class of Dreadnought nuclear deterrent submarines. Thales is on the ADS Scotland Council.
Lockheed Martin
The US arms company employs 327 staff in Glasgow. Lockheed Martin UK, headquartered in London, is the UK-based arm of Lockheed Martin Corporation, a US global security and aerospace company.
BAE Systems
The UK arms giant employs 2700 people in Scotland. The company operates two
shipyards at Govan and Scotstoun, as well as operations in Hillend and Bishopton. BAE is on the ADS Scotland Council.
Babcock International
The UK defence multinational works with the Royal Navy at Rosyth and HMNB Cluge at Helensburgh, also known as Faslane. It has 29 sites in Scotland and 100 staff. The firm says it also supports more than 3,000 jobs. Babcock is on the ADS Scotland Council.
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Featured image is of an RAF Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4. Credit: iStock and Wirestock
