Timing is Everything: The Politics and Processes of New Zealand Defence Acquisition Decision Making.

• Author: Reitzig, Andreas
• Position: Book review

Timing is Everything: The Politics and Processes of New Zealand Defence Acquisition Decision Making

Author: Peter Greener

Published by: ANU E Press, Canberra, 2009, 196pp, $19.95.

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In this book Peter Greener, a senior fellow at the Command and Staff College at the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) in Trentham, focuses on six major defence acquisition processes that were undertaken in New Zealand between 1984 and 2001. The case studies include the lengthy debate about the ANZAC frigates project (parts I and II), the decision to purchase and then sell the sealift ship HMNZS Charles Upham, the intended replacement of the ageing Skyhawk fighter aircraft with leased F-16s from the United States, the upgrading of the Orion maritime air patrol aircraft as well as the acquisition of new light armoured vehicles for the Army. Greener argues that the timing of decisions, politics and political influence, external relationships and New Zealand's own view of the world are the main factors that shaped the outcomes of these decision-making processes. Overall, Greener has done a splendid job by writing up a clear account of a complex subject such as defence procurement. But this is not just a book about defence acquisition decision-making: it simultaneously shows how the NZDF was slowly transformed from an outmoded but balanced defence force in the 1980s to the more modern niche force of the 2000s.

Greener's book is logically structured, well-written and based on meticulous research. Following a foreword by Gerald Hensley, a former Secretary of Defence, Greener first provides a short historical overview of New Zealand defence policy-making and then introduces each of the equipment acquisition processes in separate, chronologically ordered chapters. Within each chapter, Greener examines the interaction between the Treasury, the NZDF, the Ministry of Defence as well as Cabinet and illustrates the numerous factors that needed to be taken into consideration before a defence acquisition decision could be made: evaluating various possible alternatives, defining New Zealand's defence priorities as well as determining what would be acceptable to Caucus and the New Zealand public as a whole. Moreover, Greener emphasised the prominent role of politicians and public officials: he found that in nearly all of the procurement decision-making processes, officials provided largely robust advice to ministers while a small number of politicians had a...