The UK's amalgamation of the Defence Export Services Organisation within its Trade & Investment infrastructure has begun, with budget and staffing details to be confirmed this week ahead of a 1 April switch.
Work to recruit a head for the renamed UK T&I Defence and Security organisation is also at an advanced stage, with an appointment expected during May.
Announced last July, the decision to bring DESO's activities under a wider trade framework underlines a government commitment to ensure "strong corporate governance and business standards" during the overseas sale of military equipment, says UK T&I chief executive Andrew Cahn. "We hope to see the UK set the strongest ethical standards," he adds.
Also to provide synergies with the organisation's work to promote sales of UK aerospace equipment, the move could see sales activities expanded from around 20 DESO missions to potentially 100 British Consulates around the World, says Cahn.
"We are trying to treat defence like other sectors of industry," he adds, with more inward investment also to be sought from foreign companies.
Boosted by deals including the government-to-government sale of 72 Eurofighter Typhoons to Saudi Arabia for at least £4.4 billion ($8.7 billion), UK defence exports for 2007 are expected to have totalled between $15 billion and $20 billion, says the DESO.
If confirmed, this would represent an approximately 30% share of the global market for arms sales an increase from around 20% for each of the previous five years.
Source: FlightGlobal.com