Two former defence ministers have issued a damning verdict on the UK’s preparedness for war.
Former Armed Forces Minister James Heappey – who resigned last month – and former Defence Secretary Ben Wallace have criticised the UK Government’s lack of preparation at a time when talk of World War 3 is intensifying.
Mr Heappey recently revealed that an exercise to find out how the country would be governed from a wartime bunker was only attended by officials from Whitehall even though it was meant for all government officials.
His comments have been echoed by Ben Wallace who slammed the UK and claimed there were too many people who believed that “everything will go away”.
Mr Heappey told the Telegraph that recent events were a “stark reminder that war is a whole nation endeavour and…in the UK we’re a very long way behind”.
On the poorly attended government exercise, Mr Heappey said it would have been useful because it would have enabled them to find out if the UK’s procedures were still relevant.
He explained: “It’s a shame that the whole of Whitehall didn’t get involved, not only because it was a useful exercise in continuity of government and would have exposed how out of date many of our procedures now are.”
Ben Wallace echoed Mr Heappey’s comments and said that “the whole of society needs to make a step change towards recognising that our core duty is to think about our defence and resilience”.
In terms of its defence capabilities, the UK’s military is under constant criticism with fears about the potential start to World War 3 becoming more frequent.
Earlier this week, a former General of the British Army claimed that the force was now only “second class” and not ready to take on Russia.
General Sir Richard Barrons told the Sun: “If we put today’s British army in front of an enemy like Russia, they would not be ready and would take massive casualties.
“The military – the Armed Forces, Navy and Air Force – know that they are not ready to fight against a mobilised and aggressive Russia as part of NATO.”
On top of outside criticism, there are calls from inside the Cabinet to boost defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP. Current Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has piled the pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to adequately fund the military to fend off potential threats.
Mr Shapps told the House of Commons Defence Committee: “The Government is committed to 2.5 per cent. It is my view that we are living in a more dangerous world.
“I am in complete agreement that you have to pay for that defence. Exact timing, as we’ve said all along, is a matter for the Chancellor and the Government has described it ‘as conditions allow’.
“I am Secretary of State for Defence so obviously I urge for us to move to that position as quickly as possible. There will be other opportunities, including an election coming – other parties are only committed to 2 per cent, the NATO base.”
