After the unprecedented resignation of former Defence Secretary John Healey and his deputy in a massive row about military funding, an armed forces head says operations and training will have to be slashed
The British head of the armed forces has warned the military will have to “dial back’ training and operations if they do not receive greater funding.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, Chief of the Defence Staff, was appearing before the Lords International Relations and Defence Committee. Sir Richard told peers he was “concerned” about funding for “day-to-day activity” in the context of rising inflation following a major government bust-up over defence funding.
The row last week saw ex-Defence Secretary John Healey and Armed Forces minister Al Carns resign over insufficient funding for the Defence Investment Plan (DIP). Mr Healey criticised a proposal from the Treasury that he said would have increased defence spending to 2.68% of GDP in 2030.
With spending set to hit 2.6% of GDP next year, the former defence secretary said the proposal fell “well short” of the funding required for the long-delayed Dip, which will set out spending on new military equipment and infrastructure over the next decade.
The former Defence Secretary was expected to make a resignation statement to the Commons on Tuesday afternoon. Appearing before the Lords International Relations and Defence Committee, Sir Richard said rising costs had put “pressure” on training and operations, pointing to an 88% increase in the cost of aviation fuel over the past year.
He told peers: “We will have to dial back our activities and our exercise and operational activity if the level of resource funding that’s available to us does not increase.” Sir Richard said the armed forces would “prioritise” changes “around what the Government cared about most”, but said it would be “disingenuous of me to suggest that there’s going to be no impact.”
Speaking to reporters at the G7 summit in Evian, France, on Tuesday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer defended his record, saying his Government was increasing the defence budget from 2.3% of GDP to 2.6%. The Prime Minister added that the DIP would give the UK “capability for the future” and he had already reallocated money from other departments to defence.
Sir Keir added: “Obviously the new Defence Secretary is reading in and we’re talking to him about how and what we will spend that money on, in terms of capability, and he’s got his own thoughts now on what the priorities should be, and so that’s the discussion we’re in the middle of at the moment.”
