24Secretary of Defence

1. The chief executive of the Ministry of Defence shall be known as the Secretary of Defence.

2. In addition to the functions imposed on the Secretary of Defence by or under this Act or the Public Service Act 2020 or any other enactment, the Secretary shall have the following functions:

3. to be the principal civilian adviser to the Minister and other Ministers:
4. to formulate advice, in consultation with the Chief of Defence Force, on defence policy:
5. to prepare, in consultation with the Chief of Defence Force, and submit to the Minister from time to time a defence assessment, including a review of different options capable of achieving the Government’s policy goals:
6. to procure, replace, or repair ships, vehicles, aircraft, and equipment used or intended for use by the Defence Force, where that procurement, replacement, or repair has major significance to military capability; and to deliver or return such ships, vehicles, aircraft, and equipment to the Defence Force:
7. to arrange for the assessment and audit of the Defence Force in relation to any function, duty, or project, and of the Ministry of Defence in relation to any function described in paragraph (d), as and when required by the Minister, or in accordance with a programme of audit and assessment approved by the Minister, and in accordance with the following provisions:
   1. the findings of the audit and assessment shall be set out in a report in the name of the person in charge of the audit and assessment, and that person shall give the report to the Secretary of Defence for submission to the Minister:
   2. on giving the report to the Secretary of Defence, the person in charge of the audit and assessment shall give a copy of the report to the Chief of Defence Force:
   3. if the Secretary of Defence disagrees with any of the contents of the report, the Secretary shall advise the Minister of the particulars with which the Secretary disagrees:
   4. the Chief of Defence Force may report to the Minister on any of the contents of the report.

8. The Secretary shall have all such other powers as may be reasonably necessary to enable the Secretary to perform the functions and duties imposed on the Secretary by or under this Act or any other enactment.

9. Without limiting the generality of subsection (3), in the performance of any such function or duty the Secretary may, in the name and on behalf of the Crown,—

10. enter into any contract, agreement, or arrangement with any other person; and
11. purchase, take on lease, dispose of, or trade in any goods, services, or assets (whether tangible or intangible), including land, buildings, equipment, facilities, stores, operating supplies, investments, and ownership of any part of a body corporate; and
12. sell or otherwise dispose of, or grant any lease or licence of, or easement over, any land or interest in land under the control of the Ministry of Defence.