The British Army has been given an urgent warning to ramp up its spending by billions to prepare the country for war. Ministers have been told the increase stockpiles of drones, shells and armoured vehicles as procurement of ships, submarines, and fighter jets remains slow. The upcoming strategic defence review, which will be published before the NATO summit in June, will reveal how the army, navy and RAF will be modernised over the coming years.
An insider source said the country must not wait until 2027 to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP – which Sir Keir Starmer has promised to do. They told The Times: “We can ramp up the production of munitions and drones quickly, but ut we need the Government to put in the orders rather than just give us warm words.”
Shadow Armed Forces Minister Mark Francois echoed this sentiement, saying “off-the-shelf procurement” must become a top priority in order to speed up the process of acquiring military equipment.
He added: “Given the situation in Ukraine, threats to Taiwan and ongoing instability in the Middle East, we cannot possibly wait a decade to improve the combat readiness of our armed forces.”
The strategic defence review will be studied by ministers, who will then decide which recommendations to adopt, but some experts have argued this is not good enough.
Jonathan Powell, the UK’s national security adviser, wants the review to be part of a wider assessment of threats to the country and not made public, as per The Times.
The Ministry of Defence told the outlet: “Protecting national security is the foundation of our Plan for Change, which is why the Prime Minister has announced the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War, boosting funding to 2.5% cent of GDP by 2027, an increase of £13.4 billion in cash terms.
“Our armed forces are among the best in the world and are always ready to defend the UK. The review, which will be published in the spring, will explain how we will invest in modern capabilities, keeping us secure at home and strong abroad.”
