Burnham told of £4.7bn gap in Starmer’s defence improvement plan on day it was published, minister suggests Burnham left to find £4.7bn to fund a black hole in Starmer’s defence spending plan The Independent UK · Jul 1
Defence Secretary faces questions on £4.7bn funding gap left to Andy Burnham The presumptive prime minister will have to identify an extra tranche of funding for defence in his first budget. Evening Standard · Jun 30
Britain has finally grasped the nettle on defence, but tough choices lie ahead The new PM must balance the security budget and other urgent spending priorities, with little room for manoeuvre The Guardian - UK · Jun 30
The Guardian view on the defence investment plan: the UK needs security, not dependency on a wayward US Editorial: Sir Keir Starmer cuts civilian investment while deepening reliance on American power. That doesn’t feel like national renewal The Guardian - UK · Jun 30
Starmer’s delayed defence investment swansong satisfies absolutely no one The Dip couldn’t be more Keir if it tried: the military, the allies and probably not even Keir himself were happy The Guardian - UK · Jun 30
Britain not safe under Starmer’s new defence plan, John Healey suggests Healey – who quit earlier this month after accusing the prime minister of being ‘unwilling to commit the resources’ needed to keep Britain safe – urged the government to set out a target date for the UK to spend 3 per cent of GDP on defence The Independent UK · Jun 30
Britain's Safety At Risk? Labour's Defence Plan Faces £14 Billion Black Hole The UK Government's £14.5 billion Defence Investment Plan faces criticism for insufficient new funding, raising concerns about military readiness and financial pressures on the Ministry of Defence. International Business Times UK · Jun 30
Defence spending: The key takeaways from Starmer’s plan to protect Britain While Sir Keir Starmer has promised the DIP will reverse the ‘corrosive hollowing out’ of the armed forces, the funding package still falls well short of the £28bn military officials said would be necessary to fill a black hole in the MoD’s budget The Independent UK · Jun 30
Starmer warns Burnham not to borrow to fund defence as he reveals £15bn plan PM unveils long-awaited defence investment plan, which he says will mean hit to road, housing and energy schemes The Guardian - UK · Jun 30
Next chancellor will have to find £5bn to fund black hole in defence funding, government figures reveal – as it happened Keir Starmer earlier unveiled a £15bn plan but said defence spending cannot be ‘bottomless pit’ and MoD has to ‘spend better’ The Guardian - UK · Jun 30
Trump expects Nato allies to honour defence spending pledges, White House says Trump’ss demand comes as Sir Keir Starmer prepares to unveil a long-delayed investment plan for the armed forces The Independent UK · Jun 29
Starmer hails ‘game-changing’ investment as delayed defence plan to be unveiled The Dip will focus on ramping up the UK’s use of drones and autonomous weapons. Evening Standard · Jun 29
Donald Trump expects UK to honour defence spending pledge, says White House The demand by the US president came as Sir Keir Starmer is due to unveil a long-delayed investment plan for the armed forces. The Independent UK · Jun 29
Long-delayed defence investment plan to be published with £5bn for drones New defence secretary, Dan Jarvis, persuades Rachel Reeves to reduce £18bn gap that led to John Healey quitting The Guardian - UK · Jun 29
The Independent UK · Jun 29 Starmer finds an extra £1bn for defence as long-delayed spending plan finally revealed The new defence investment plan has allocated £14.5bn to fund Britain’s defence, still falling well short of the £28bn officials previously said was needed
Evening Standard · Jun 29 Long-delayed defence plan will safeguard Britain ‘into the future’, Starmer says The defence investment plan (Dip), originally due last year, will be published on Tuesday.
International Business Times UK · Jun 29 The End of Britain's Iconic Destroyers? Royal Navy's Future Fleet Will Be Built Around Drones Instead The Royal Navy will replace its Type 45 destroyers with drone-armed Common Combat Vessels due to budget constraints, marking a shift towards hybrid naval capabilities.
The Independent UK · Jun 28 Plans to replace destroyers scrapped to make way for drone hubs in ‘hybrid Navy’ The Royal Navy will instead procure at least six ‘common combat vessels’, which will act as command hubs for uncrewed systems, officials said.
The Independent UK · Jun 28 Plans to replace ageing destroyers scrapped to make way for drones in ‘hybrid Navy’ Underwater drones will be included in bid to tackle Russian submarine activity in the Atlantic
The Guardian - UK · Jun 28 Burnham may have to boost defence spending to pass ‘Moscow test’, says ex-military chief Adm Sir Tony Radakin says UK currenly ‘falls short’ of level required to keep Russian threats at bay
The Independent UK · Jun 28 Plans to replace UK’s ageing destroyers and frigates ‘scrapped in defence plan’ The UK is in the ‘unprecedented’ position of being second from the bottom in a Nato league table
Evening Standard · Jun 28 Plans to replace destroyers and frigates scrapped in defence plan – report Funding for up to eight Type 83 destroyers and five Type 32 frigates will not appear in the spending blueprint, it has been claimed.
The Times of India · Jun 28 'Moscow test' for Burnham: Ex-defence chief says next UK PM must act like a 'wartime leader' amid global threats Andy Burnham will need to apply a "Moscow test" to his policies and govern "almost like a wartime prime minister" if he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer, former Chief of the Defence Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin has warned.
Evening Standard · Jun 27 Elite commandos promised £500m in defence spending plan High-speed boats and strike drones will be committed to the elite force, with a focus on the High North.