7.3 We are clear that the Services should continue to be the key building blocks of Defence and the basis on which military capability is generated. In the proposed model the Service Chiefs would, within a control framework, have greater delegations and be empowered with the levers and appropriate resources to develop and generate their Service for which they would be held to account. We see them having a reduced responsibility for departmental strategy, resource allocation and the corporate management of Defence. Instead we see their primary focus being on leading and running their Service, whilst retaining their constitutional responsibility as professional heads of the individual Services and with full command over their people. In the new model, the role of the Service Chiefs would be:
• providing environmental advice to MOD and Government on the operational employment of their Service, contribute to CDS's formulation of military strategic advice, and advice to Defence Board decisions on departmental strategy and high level requirements setting, as they relate to their Service;
• conducting their own force development process to propose, in their Command Plan, optimum, affordable force structure (including equipment) which will best deliver the Defence Board's requirements;
• the development and generation of their Service to ensure it is balanced to deliver Defence outputs now and in the future. This would include recruiting, educating, training, equipping, preparing and sustaining ther Service;
• running their Service and the Command TLB - being accountable for delivering agreed outputs within their delegated budget - making choices, within the framework of the Command Plan and the corporate framework set out in part 8, about the best balance between manpower, training, equipment, support etc and between different capability areas;
• acting as the customer for CDM, setting the detailed equipment and support requirements and budgets, and articulating their infrastructure requirements for delivery by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation;
• supporting PJHQ in the delivery of environmental aspects of operations and, subject to further consideration by the Department, commanding the delivery of delegated operations;
• conducting appropriately prioritised international engagement in support of the National Security Strategy. Additionally, undertaking domestic and representational influence and engagement activities in support of the Service's place in society; and,
• as custodians of their Service, maintaining its long-term health, its fighting effectiveness and sustainability, including career management, professional standards, reputation, ethos, welfare and morale.
7.4 Conversely, and as we set out in Part 4 the Department needs to streamline its high-level decision making processes, reducing the number of individuals involved and providing a much increased emphasis on individual accountability. We propose therefore the Service Chiefs should have a reduced executive function in the formulation of overall departmental strategy. They would still continue to provide operational advice to MOD and Government on the employment of their Service.
7.5 The Service Chiefs also have a long history of advising the Prime Minister on the employment of their Service. While ordinarily they report and tender advice through the CDS to the Defence Secretary, the freedom to represent advice as guardians of their Service direct to the Prime Minister as a last resort was formalised in the 1984 White Paper, 'The Central Organisation of Defence'. A mechanism for the Prime Minister and Service Chiefs to meet when required to discuss the health and morale of their Service seems entirely reasonable. However, we would not expect this to cut across the clear lines of accountability that we have set out for the management of the Department, with corporate decision making lying with the new Defence Board and CDS's position as the Defence Secretary's and the Government's principal military advisor strengthened.
7.6 Given these changes, we would expect the single Service staffs currently situated in the Head Office to move to their Service Headquarters. But while the focus of the Service Chiefs' time and effort will be on their Command they will need to maintain office space and a support staff in London. This should be headed at two-star level to ensure an appropriate level of representation and no reduction in cross-Service integration.