Thursday 22 November 2007

QinetiQ

Interesting name. And one we will all become only too familiar with over the next couple of days.

Read about it here.

In short, another stunning triumph for the Bottler.

Well done, Gordo!
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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

QinetiQ – the War Profiteer Welsh Politicians Love to Love*

THE National Audit Office (NAO) delivers a stinging rebuke to the Ministry of Defence with the publication of its long-awaited report into the privatisation of QinetiQ, the
defence-technology group.

QinetiQ is a company that has been mired in ethical controversy since
its very beginning, for claims of taxpayer rip-offs, profit-gouging,
sweetheart contracts and conflicts of interest. Despite this greed of the highest order, Welsh politicians act as if they could not care less.

In January 2007, the QinetiQ-led Metrix Consortium won what is to be the largest investment in Welsh history – a £16 billion contract to build a private military training academy at St Athan, in the Vale of Glamorgan. The project would thrust Wales to the forefront of the global arms trade, since the business model at the heart of the St Athan Academy is to maximise profits by providing training not just to the British Armed Forces, but to militaries from all over the world

Privatisation of the military, many fear, as is the case in other
sectors, can undermine public accountability and erode ideas of public
service and the public good, while achieving little if anything in the
way of cost savings. “The only winners in the privatisation of defence
training,” says Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of the Public and
Commercial Services Union, “are the shareholders of the Metrix Consortium.”

Jill Evans, Plaid MEP, has recently raised concerns about the St Athan
Defence Training Academy, particularly because of the Consortium members
behind the project, which include other arms companies like Raytheon.

This cosy embrace of QinetiQ by Welsh political leaders over the past
few years is puzzling, to say the least, given the country’s supposed
commitment to principles of social justice and fairness, good
governance, sustainable development and responsible international
citizenship.

We are calling for a public debate about the companies involved in the
Metrix consortium and we seek assurances that they are not involved in
corruption or the trade of unethical weapons like cluster bombs and
depleted uranium.”

QinetiQ also helps Wales manage and market its new UAV (Unmanned Aerial
Vehicle) centre at Parc Aberporth – a facility the government has said
is a key part of its plans for the regeneration of Cardigan and West
Wales. Welsh Assembly Members and Ministers, in welcoming QinetiQ to
Parc Aberporth, have spoken glowingly of its “vast expertise” and
“international reputation.”

PCS the union representing staff involved said "Recently the MoD won awards at a PFI ceremony for privatising more functions than any other Civil Service department. This is a national
scandal. Companies like QinetiQ were flogged off cheap, and now intend
to make vast profits from delivering military training. QinetiQ will
squeeze every penny out of the MoD that it can, while delivering
training where quality is sacrificed to making profits for its
shareholders.This does not benefit the people of South Wales or our
service personnel. It benefits QinetiQ, and that's all they're
interested in. With recent reports of the breakdown of the military
covenant, PCS asks is privatising defence training going to make things
better? Our answer is an uneqivocal 'No!' '"

http://www.cynefinywerin.org.uk/
http://www.nomurderacademyatstathans.com/
www.metrixconsortium.blogspot.com

23 November 2007 at 11:51

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