46 National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review
4.149 To improve our response further, we will place military planners in key government
departments to give the military a wider and more formal role in supporting national resilience
contingency planning. We will regularly review the National Risk Register and associated
contingency plans to identify areas where the Armed Forces can contribute more. This is in
addition to the 10,000 military personnel available on standby to assist the civil authorities for
significant terrorist incidents.
Space
4.150 Satellites support our everyday lives, and the space industry is growing rapidly,
contributing directly to our prosperity. But space is increasingly congested, with risks of
collisions and from other nations’ space activities. We will publish a National Space Policy
with a Ministerial committee to coordinate action on both prosperity and security.
4.151 We will establish a process to mitigate the impact of threats and hazards in space,
working with industry to share information and expertise. We will work with international
partners to improve space weather forecasts and develop our capacity to respond to events
such as major disruptive solar flares.
4.152 We will work with international partners, including the Five Eyes Combined Space
Operations initiative and the EU, to contribute to global efforts to ensure a safe and secure
space environment. We will enhance our space surveillance capabilities, enabling us to
assess space threats, risks and events, both natural and man-made.
4.153 Satellite signals are central to daily life, from smartphones and financial transactions
to complex military equipment. Although the US Global Positioning System will remain the
standard for secure navigation systems, we will enhance the resilience of military users and
key domestic resilience responders using new technologies incorporating the European
Galileo system. We will support UK industry to become leaders in developing Galileo-related
technology.
4.154 The global reach of our Armed Forces depends on resilient satellite communications,
currently provided by the Skynet 5 constellation. In collaboration with our allies, we will pursue
innovative technologies and make our global communications operations resilient to current
and emerging threats, including jamming and cyber attack.