The defence secretary, John Healey, has announced he will scrap British navy vessels and army drones as part of £500m in cost-saving measures in what was described as a “black day” for the new government.
Two former Royal Navy flagships, a frigate and two support tankers will be decommissioned, with the savings reinvested into the defence budget. Healey blamed the move on a “dire inheritance” left by the previous Tory administration.
