Category Archives: defence spending

Keir Starmer Puts The UK On A War Footing As He Warns Of ‘Growing Russian Aggression’

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Keir Starmer has put the UK on a war footing as he warned of “growing Russian aggression” at sea, in the air and cyberspace.

The prime minister said he wanted to deliver “peace through strength” as he launched the government’s strategic defence review (SDR).

But a row broke out over how Labour plans to pay for its plans, which include building up to 12 new attack submarines, thousands of long-range missiles, six munitions factories and billions of pounds worth of nuclear warheads.

Starmer refused to echo defence secretary John Healey in confirming that defence spending will increase to 3% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2034.

In a major speech in Glasgow, the PM said: “We are moving to warfighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces.

“When we are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, the most effective way to deter them is to be ready – and, frankly, to show them that we’re ready – to deliver peace through strength.”

Starmer said “the front line is here” as he warned that the UK faces greater threats now than at any time since the end of the Cold War more than 30 years ago.

He said: “We face war in Europe, new nuclear risks, daily cyber attacks. Growing Russian aggression in our waters, menacing our skies.

“Their reckless actions driving up the cost of living here at home, creating economic pain and hitting working people the hardest.

“A new era in the threats we face demands a new era for defence and security, not just to survive in this new world – but to lead.”

The government has announced it will spend 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2027, with an ambition of hitting 3% in the next parliament.

However, the SDR’s own authors have warned that the military budget must hit that 3% target if the government’s military plans are to be affordable.

Meanwhile, at a Nato summit later this month, member states will be told that they should increase their defence spending to 3.5% of GDP.

Opposition parties criticised the government for failing to set out how it will pay for its defence spending plans.

Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge said: “All of Labour’s strategic defence review promises will be taken with a pinch of salt unless they can show there will actually be enough money to pay for them.”

Lib Dem defence spokesperson Helen Maguire said ministers were showing “a worrying lack of urgency”.

“Unless Labour commits to holding cross-party talks on how to reach 3% much more rapidly than the mid-2030s, this announcement risks becoming a damp squib,” she said.

Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice said: “The commitments made in this defence review are completely empty if Labour does not commit to spending 3% of GDP on defence.”

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Starmer Accused of ‘Betraying World’s Most Vulnerable Children’ As He Slashes International Aid

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Keir Starmer has been severely criticised after announcing he is cutting the UK’s foreign aid budget to boost defence spending.

The prime minister declared he would now be increasing the defence budget from its current rate of 2.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) to 2.5% by 2027, three years earlier than planned.

It comes after Donald Trump said Europe could no longer lean on the US for military protection.

The US president is also triggering wider security concerns as he seems to be giving in to Vladimir Putin’s demands just to end the Ukraine war.

But Starmer confirmed he would be reducing the amount spent on international aid from 0.5% of GDP to 0.3% to pay for this bump in defence.

The prime minister said he was not “happy” to make this announcement, but noted that “at times like these the defence and security of the British people must always come first”.

Labour MP Sarah Champion, chair of the Commons international development committee, said: “I urge the prime minister to rethink today’s announcement. Cutting the aid budget to fund defence spending is a false economy that will only make the world less safe.

“The prime minister said today that he was ‘proud’ of the UK’s pioneering work on overseas development. I am bitterly disappointed to see the Government abandon this agenda, not only pulling the rug from under some of the world’s most vulnerable people but endangering our long-term security.”

Charities also hit out at the prime minister, calling the decision “reckless” and “short-sighted”.

The CEO of Bond, the UK network for organisations working in international development, Romilly Greenhill said: “This is a short-sighted and appalling move by both the PM and Treasury.

“Slashing the already diminished UK aid budget to fund an uplift in defence is a reckless decision that will have devastating consequences for millions of marginalised people worldwide.”

She claimed Britain was “following in the US’s footsteps” and that undermine the UK’s global goals as well as weaken its national security interests.

The announcement comes as less than 48 hours before Starmer is due to meet Trump in Washington.

The US president has been calling for Nato member states in particular to hike their defence spending, even claiming it should be hiked to 5%.

Greenhill continued: “Tragically, this cut is even deeper than the last Conservative government’s and will destroy this Labour government’s reputation, tearing to shreds their previous manifesto commitments to rebuild the UK’s international reputation as a reliable global partner.”

Save the Children UK’s CEO, Moazzam Malik, also slammed the news, writing on X: “We are stunned by this decision to cut the aid budget in order to increase military spending. It is a betrayal of the world’s most vulnerable children and the UK’s national interest.”

He said this “signals a withdrawal from efforts to tackle climate change, global poverty and inequality and conflict and humanitarian needs”.

He warned it would damage efforts to address global health, and warned it would “add to economic instability internationally”.

“The impacts will have direct consequences for children and families in the UK as well as around the world.”

Malik continued: “Other countries will watch the UK’s decision and are likely to follow suit in reducing commitments to international collaboration.

“It will undermine aspirations to build a ‘rules based order’ that is so essential for the UK’s long-term security and prosperity. It will make the world a more dangerous place for children now and in the future.”

Malik also pointed out that the move overshadows Starmer’s own promises to defend Ukraine.

“Earlier this week, the prime minister promised to ‘stand with Ukraine’. Now he’s serving notice on the support needed by the country’s children, who have been forced from their homes, seen their schools bombed and lived in fear for three years,” the Save the Children CEO said.

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A statement from our CEO @MoazzamTMalik on the news that the government is cutting the UK aid budget to fund an increase in defence spending:

“We are stunned by this decision to cut the aid budget in order to increase military spending. It is a betrayal of the world’s most… pic.twitter.com/Rk2PA56Ljd

— Save the Children UK (@savechildrenuk) February 25, 2025

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It is a betrayal of the world’s most… pic.twitter.com/Rk2PA56Ljd— Save the Children UK (@savechildrenuk) February 25, 2025\n\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":1350,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GkoqzvZXkAABF5C.jpg:large","thumbnail_width":1080,"title":"Save the Children UK on Twitter / 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A statement from our CEO @MoazzamTMalik on the news that the government is cutting the UK aid budget to fund an increase in defence spending:

“We are stunned by this decision to cut the aid budget in order to increase military spending. It is a betrayal of the world’s most… pic.twitter.com/Rk2PA56Ljd

— Save the Children UK (@savechildrenuk) February 25, 2025

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