The politics of military megaprojects: discursive struggles in Canadian and Australian naval shipbuilding strategies

• Main Authors: Andrea Migone, Alexander Howlett, Michael Howlett
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: Policy and policy administration; n.e.c; defence procurement; Type 26 frigate; military doctrine; public administration; procurement policy; policy alignment; Royal Canadian Navy (RCN); Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.32920/23656980.v1; https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/The_politics_of_military_megaprojects_discursive_struggles_in_Canadian_and_Australian_naval_shipbuilding_strategies/23656980

Large-scale military platform procurement is an essential but understudied component of the policy studies of megaprojects. Procurement decisions in this area, from ships to aircraft, are examples of a specific type of often very expensive purchases which feature complex multi-actor and multiyear processes characterized by high degrees of conflict between actors over purchases and planning horizons. This study of military procurement efforts of this type demonstrates the importance of maintaining policy ‘alignment’ between governments and service providers for successful megaproject procurement to occur and suggests several strategies for accomplishing this that can be applied to similar large-scale but nondefense-related projects, ranging from hydroelectric dams to high-speed railway development.