Their job is to prevent policies being pulled out of shape by inter- departmental tugs-of-war, or problems disappearing between the cracks at departmental boundaries.
Seizing the opportunity provided by Dr Fox's plans for decentralisation, General Sir Peter Wall, the head of the army, asked Major-General Nick Carter, a former commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan and the director-general of land warfare, to carry out a review that would shape the army of the future.