"Luke Pollard, the minister for defence readiness and industry, told the Guardian the plan is a bigger task than many people outside defence realise. It will mean fundamentally changing the shape of our armed forces, so pivoting, in particular, towards more autonomy, he said, while also stressing the need to refill military stockpiles sent to Ukraine in recent years. It is not a simple matter of just replacing tank A with tank B."
"The plan will show how the government will fund its strategic defence review (SDR), the blueprint for transforming the military amid growing threats from Russia and rising commitments to Nato. Ministers accepted all the SDR's recommendations when it was published last June. But the head of the military, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, told MPs last month that defence cuts would be needed without more funding."
"Earlier this week, Keir Starmer reportedly convened advisers to try to find a way to overcome the funding gap. One option could be to ease chancellor Rachel Reeves's fiscal rules to boost defence spending, reported the Financial Times. A government spokesperson said the fiscal rules are non-negotiable. UK will commit to spending 5% of GDP on defence by 2035 Pollard said it was not right for me to comment on leaks, but added:"
The Defence Investment Plan has been repeatedly postponed, stalling the next-generation Tempest fighter programme and contributing to a projected £28bn funding shortfall over four years. The plan requires significant restructuring of the armed forces toward increased autonomy and replenishment of military stockpiles dispatched to Ukraine. The plan will set out funding to implement the Strategic Defence Review, whose recommendations were accepted last June. Without additional funding, defence cuts are likely. Political options under consideration include relaxing fiscal rules to increase defence spending, while current fiscal rules have been described as non-negotiable.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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