This annual statistical compendium from the Ministry of Defence contains a wide range of data relating to the armed forces, defence expenditure, service and civilian personnel and defence activities. Findings for the period 2003-04 include: i) defence spending was the Government's fourth highest expenditure, with a provisional outturn against the Departmental Expenditure Limits of £37.2 billion, and a total value of MoD fixed assets of £86.3 billion as of March 2003; ii) the total number of MoD personnel fell by 34 per cent between 1990 to 2004, with service personnel down by 32 per cent; iii) the proportion of serving personnel from the ethnic minorities stood at 4.9 per cent at April 2004, compared with 4.3 per cent the previous year; iv) in 2002-03, MoD net expenditure on R&D activity totalled £2.7 billion; and v) the MoD spent around £1.7 billion on conflict prevention activities worldwide during the year 2003-04.

Military Geographies is about how local space, place, environment and landscape are shaped by military presence, and about how wider geographies are touched by militarism. A book about how local space, place, environment and landscape are shaped by military presence, and about how wider geographies are touched by militarism. Sets a new agenda for the study of military geography with its critical analysis of the ways in which military control over space is legitimized. Explores the ways in which militarism and military activities control development, the use of space and our understanding of place. Focuses on military lands, establishments and personnel in contemporary peacetime settings. Uses examples from Europe, North America and Australasia. Draws on original research into the mechanisms by which the British government manages the defence estate. Illustrated with maps, plans and other figures.

Most Ministry of Defence projects funded by PFI deals are delivered satisfactorily, on time and on budget. In six of the eight projects examined by the NAO, the Department has generally achieved value for money through effective allocation and management of risks. Failures to identify and manage risks reduced the value for money achieved from the other two projects reviewed by the NAO. Most MOD PFI projects are now providing important support to military and civilian staff. They cover a portfolio of more than 50 projects delivering a broad range of services such as equipment, buildings, training and communications. The Department has developed commercial disciplines for scrutinising the value for money of its PFI procurements and has extended these into other projects. While the MOD allocates and manages many of the project risks effectively, it does not always have the robust data necessary to understand the risks it is asking the private sector to bear. In at least seven projects, the decision to use PFI has been reversed. Overall, the PFI projects surveyed took an average of 37 months to procure compared with the PFI average across government of 34 months. And larger PFI projects with a capital value over £50 million took the MOD an average of 45 months to procure. This longer procurement time reflects the complexity and special requirements of the Department's projects, but there is scope for the Department to improve the speed at which it closes larger deals. It is seeking to do so through improvements to the oversight of its capital procurements. The NAO also highlight the risk that contractors may incorrectly report performance which would otherwise lead to payment deductions.

Over the past fifty years, crisis management has become essential to achieving and maintaining national security. This book offers a comparative analysis of the preconditions and constraints nine European states place on their participation in international crisis management operations and the important consequences of such decisions, and provides a theoretical framework to help the reader understand this complex decision-making process.

A PDF version of this book is available for free in open access via the Elgaronline platform - www.elgaronline.com/view/9781783477036.xml Policy analysts are accustomed to thinking in terms of tools and instruments. Yet an authoritative exa