Defence orders can become part of an election campaign before the ships or equipment are delivered. An outgoing government could promise purchases that its successor will then have to sustain or cancel. The immediate political benefit of announcing the programme can therefore fall to one government while the consequences of cancellation fall to another. This is presented as an interpretation of procurement politics, not a claim that every election promise has that motive.
Notable Point · 4:16:23-4:16:41
Election promises and the cost of cancelling defence programmes
An observation about election promises explains how announcing and cancelling the same programme can fall to different governments.