The military has played a major role in the UK’s pandemic response, and there are signs the deployment has helped to make the forces more nimble and adaptable, says Carlos Solar (University of Essex)

Solar, Carlos

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Joined	up	effort:	the	military’s	role	in	tackling	COVID-19The	military	has	played	a	major	role	in	the	UK’s	pandemic	response,	and	there	are	signs	the	deployment	hashelped	to	make	the	forces	more	nimble	and	adaptable,	says	Carlos	Solar	(University	of	Essex).At	times	of	national	crisis,	governments	often	turn	to	the	military.	The	pandemic	is	no	exception.	In	the	UK,	theMinistry	of	Defence	set	up	the	COVID	Support	Force	(CSF)	in	March	2020,	using	armed	forces	personnel	to	assistpublic	services.Since	then,	Britain’s	military	has	been	praised	for	showing	rapid	planning	capacity,	a	problem-solving	mentality,	andan	unquestionable	chain	of	command.	As	of	May	2021,	the	MOD	had	responded	to	399	COVID-19	Military	Aid	toCivilian	Authority	(MACA)	requests	under	three	main	areas	of	effort:	helping	NHS	England	to	vaccinate	people,supporting	hospitals	across	the	UK	in	intensive	care	units,	and	assisting	with	the	national	testing	effort,	setting	upprogrammes	in	Birmingham,	Nottingham,	Merthyr	Tydfil,	Liverpool,	Kent,	Manchester	and	Scotland.In	Essex,	for	example,	local	MPs,	health	officials	and	the	police	commissioner	requested	military	assistance	after	apeak	of	infection	rates	during	the	second	wave	of	the	virus	threatened	to	overwhelm	the	NHS.	Across	the	country,hundreds	of	veterans	have	also	supported	essential	services	to	NHS	Trusts	and	local	authorities	in	Plymouth,Exeter,	Stoke	and	Stafford.Military	Aid	to	Civilian	Authorities	requires	ministerial	approval.	The	legal	authority	to	use	the	armed	forcespersonnel	in	operations	under	MACA	is	governed	by	the	Civil	Contingencies	Act	2004	and	the	Emergency	PowersAct	1964.	Very	rarely	do	soldiers	carry	their	weapons	as	this	requires	explicit	authorisation,	and	they	do	not	holdpowers	of	arrest	as	law	enforcement	institutions	do.	MACA	activity	is	not	charged	to	the	defence	budget,	meaningthey	can	claim	the	costs	involved	for	non-emergency,	planned	routine	support.Over	the	first	six	months	of	the	pandemic,	the	CSF	committed	up	to	4,000	armed	forces	personnel	on	most	days.Up	to	7,500	were	in	readiness	to	respond	to	future	demands	at	home	and	overseas,	including	Gibraltar,	theFalkland	Islands	and	Ascension	Island.	The	CSF’s	roles	and	missions	have	been	as	varied	as	tackling	onlinedisinformation,	supporting	police	services,	planning	logistical	support,	working	with	NATO	partners,	deliveringpersonnel	protective	equipment	(PPE),	providing	ambulance	support	and	medical	evacuation,	and	delivering	testingkits	to	care	homes.	A	paper	by	Fawzia	Gilbson-Fall	argues	that	military	engagements	in	health-related	activities	at	the	domestic	levelhave	changed	global	health	military	practices.	As	in	Britain,	military	deployments	using	blended	civil-militaryresponse	are	now	a	trend	across	industrialised	and	emerging	nations	in	Africa,	Asia	and	continental	Europe,	asshown	in	Table	1.Table	1:	Examples	of	military	types	of	responses	to	COVID-19Trend	type Key	characteristics Example	of	responseMinimaltechnicalmilitarysupportCivilian	leadership-military	niche	tasks	in	transportation	and	supplychain,	border	controlJapan,	Taiwan,	Kerala,Sweden,	New	Zealand,South	KoreaBlendedcivil-militaryresponseCivilian	leadership	military	support	in	organisation	and	logistics,	airrepatriations,	border	controls,	mobile	testing,	quarantine	and	lockdownenforcement,	emergency	field	hospitalsNigeria,	Kenya,	US,	France,UK,	China,	Vietnam,	SouthAfrica,	SingaporeMilitary-ledresponseMilitary	leadership	in	response	planning	and	coordination,	emergencyhospitals,	contact-tracing,	surveillance,	border	controls,	quarantine	andlockdown	enforcementIndonesia,	Philippines,	Iran,Pakistan,	Brazil,	PeruLSE Covid 19 Blog: Joined up effort: the military’s role in tackling COVID-19 Page 1 of 3		Date originally posted: 2021-07-26Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2021/07/26/joined-up-effort-the-militarys-role-in-tackling-covid-19/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/Source:	Fawzia	Gibson-Fall	(2021)	Military	responses	to	COVID-19,	emerging	trends	in	global	civil-militaryengagementsAngela	Merkel	recently	signed	off	the	largest	military	contingent	on	the	home	front	in	Germany’s	modern	history	tohelp	alleviate	increasing	pressure	on	the	health	system.	In	France,	Emmanuel	Macron	announced	plans	for	35military-run	vaccination	centres	around	the	country	to	boost	mass	immunisation.Perhaps	the	most	valuable,	hands-on	experience	gained	by	the	military	has	been	through	its	surgeons	and	medicalpersonnel	embedded	in	the	NHS	during	the	pandemic.	As	a	group	of	medical	staff	writing	for	the	BMJ	explained,“the	military’s	role	within	the	NHS	provided	an	opportunity	to	learn	and	capture	lessons	to	take	forward	into	itsdoctrine”.	The	forces	might	expect	the	pandemic	to	introduce	new	practices	to	military	telemedicine,	newtechnologies	against	new	biological	threats,	and	readiness	for	personal	protective	equipment	(PPE)	logistics,redeployment	and	training.Miltary	staff	and	contractors	build	the	Nightingale	Hospital	in	east	London,	March	2020.Photo:	Andrew	Parsons/	Number	10	via	a	CC-BY-NC-ND	2.0	licenceI	argue	in	a	recent	article	that	introducing	change	in	the	MoD	and	the	services	is	a	rocky	road.	It	demandsreshaping	organisational	and	managerial	structures	and	is	dependent	on	many	internal	and	external	pressures	onthe	defence	establishment.	The	fact	that	the	government	has	eased	bureaucracy	and	speeded	up	decision-makingin	light	of	the	pandemic	is	a	good	indication	that	military	policy	can	become	more	adaptable.While	most	of	the	pressure	has	been	on	the	home	front,	British	top	brass	are	equally	concerned	about	preparing	forfuture	battles	against	foreign	threats	that	could	emerge	after	the	danger	to	health	is	largely	over.	General	Sir	NickCarter	warned	that	a	post-pandemic	world	could	see	political	and	financial	nationalism	rise	to	dangerous	levels.Drawing	parallels	with	the	period	following	World	War	I	and	the	post-1929	recession,	Carter	warned	against	somecountries	isolating	and	pushing	against	humanitarian	norms	and	values	worldwide.The	Nobel	Peace	Prize	laureate,	Mohamed	ElBaradei,	issued	a	similar	call	for	states	to	reconvene	their	security	toinclude	new	governance	approaches	beyond	the	physical	that	satisfy	development	goals	on	needs	such	as	food,health,	education,	and	employment.	Like	Carter,	ElBaradei	commended	a	global	system	steered	by	internationalcooperation.It	is	still	too	early,	however,	to	say	what	direct	and	indirect	effects	the	pandemic	will	have	on	British	defence	policyand	the	broader	Common	Security	and	Defence	Policy	(CSDP)	of	the	European	Union.	The	pandemic	redrew	astrategic	scenario	characterised	by	austere	military	expenditure	and	focused	primarily	on	tackling	the	most	pressingtraditional	and	unconventional	security	risks.	As	the	world	enters	a	new	economic,	political	and	security	balance,the	challenge	for	British	policymakers	remains	the	same:	how	to	do	more	with	what	is	already	at	hand.This	post	represents	the	views	of	the	author	and	not	those	of	the	COVID-19	blog,	nor	LSE.LSE Covid 19 Blog: Joined up effort: the military’s role in tackling COVID-19 Page 2 of 3		Date originally posted: 2021-07-26Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2021/07/26/joined-up-effort-the-militarys-role-in-tackling-covid-19/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/LSE Covid 19 Blog: Joined up effort: the military’s role in tackling COVID-19 Page 3 of 3		Date originally posted: 2021-07-26Permalink: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/2021/07/26/joined-up-effort-the-militarys-role-in-tackling-covid-19/Blog homepage: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/covid19/

Joined up effort: the military’s role in tackling COVID-19

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Joined up effort: the military’s role in tackling COVID-19

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