If this is the context in which British PSCs will find themselves operating, what types of activity are likely to see PSC participation? I believe there will be four main areas. These are intelligence provision and analysis; support to stabilization and post-conflict reconstruction efforts; security sector reform; and humanitarian and development assistance. The first two areas of activity will be for both commercial and government clients; the last two will be for government clients alone. The focus of this section of the paper will be on performing services for government. This might seem surprising, given that throughout this paper I have argued that British PSCs depend primarily on the private sector, and have negligible business from the British Government. But on a practical level, PSCs already undertake work for foreign governments, with one contract alone almost certainly accounting for more than the sum of HMG's expenditure on the PSC sector; it would therefore make sense to look at the services these companies might seek to provide to other states. Secondly, the extent to which HMG will use PSCs is likely to be a fundamental element of the political debate surrounding the sector over the next five years. Thirdly, I would argue that HMG will almost certainly have to increase its use of PSCs: to do more with less; to improve its delivery of existing services; and to realize the potential the sector offers for the achievement of British foreign and security policy goals.
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