Starmer to take PMQs as he faces backlash over ‘poisoned chalice’ defence investment plan – UK politics live | Politics
Starmer to take PMQs as he faces backlash over ‘poisoned chalice’ defense investment plan
Good morning. Yesterday Keir Starmer published his defense investment plan (Dip), arguably the last major announcement of his premiership. Today is likely to be his second final PMQ (he is expected to be at the NATO summit next Wednesday and will have his swan song on July 15) and the session will likely be dominated by Dip-related complaints.
In general, there are three separate criticisms.
1) ‘It does not increase defense spending sufficiently.’ This is what military chiefs (privately) and retired military leaders (on TV) have been saying for years. Yesterday Institute for Financial Studies actually accepted. The increase in defense spending under Labor was “significant”, a briefing said. But the problem is that last year, under pressure from Donald Trump, Keir Starmer and other NATO leaders made this commitment. Increase defense spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035 And, As IFS explainsDespite the increase announced yesterday, there is no reliable way to reach this point yet.
2) ‘It’s not even properly funded.’ Like Kiran Stacey And Dan Sabbagh As explained in the Guardian’s splash story, the Dip means a £15bn spending increase; but there is no word yet on where the money will come from to fund almost £5bn of this.
This is a problem for Andy Burnham and the chancellor, who were not informed about the black hole before the Dip was published yesterday. Last night liam foxThe former Tory defense minister said Starmer had left a “poisoned chalice” for his successor.
3) ‘And the parts that are funded are partly funded by unpopular cuts.’ Part of the Dip is being funded by the cancellation of road projects, which has angered Labor MPs whose constituencies are affected. Hamish Falconer He is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and normally ministers do not publicly criticize the government’s decisions. But he is also the MP for Lincoln and posted this last night: a message He said on social media he was “disappointed” by the threat to the A46 Newark bypass expansion plan. in the House of Commons Jonathan DaviesScrapping the A38 Derby Junctions plan would “put the brakes on economic growth”, the Mid Derbyshire MP has said. And last night Claire WardThe Labor mayor of the East Midlands has complained that his area has been disproportionately affected. She said on the Cathy Newman Show on Sky:
My complaint today is that the East Midlands appears to be the only region said to have sacrificed its road investment program to contribute to the Dip.
Here is the agenda of the day.
9.30: MPs are holding a debate in Westminster Hall on the case to ban MPs from working second jobs.
Morning: Defense Secretary Dan Jarvis is visiting Cambridgeshire.
Afternoon: Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs.
14.15: Police chiefs are giving evidence to the joint human rights committee on policing protests.
If you would like to contact me, please send a message below the line or send a message on social media during comments open hours (between 10:00 – 15:00). I can’t read all messages BTL, but if you type “Andrew” in a message addressed to me, I’m more likely to see it because I’m looking for posts containing that word.
If you want to flag something urgently, it’s best to use social media. You can reach me on Bluesky at @andrewsparrowgdn.bsky.social. The Guardian has stopped posting from their official account on
I find it very helpful for readers to point out errors, even minor typos. No mistake is too small to be corrected. I also find your questions very interesting. I can’t promise to respond to them all, but I will try to respond as much as I can, either on BTL or sometimes on the blog.
important events
House building in Scotland is at its lowest level in almost a decade, figures show
Robyn Vinter
Robyn Vinter is a Guardian reporter covering Scotland.
House building in Scotland falls to lowest level in nearly a decade official figures show.
Scottish government statistics show completions are at their lowest level since 2016-17, with the exception of 2020-21 when Covid-19 impacted housebuilding.
A total of 17,268 new homes were built and 14,955 homes started in Scotland in 2025-26, down 10% and 4% respectively on the previous year.
Critics have said that at the current rate of progress the Scottish government’s target of delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032 will be missed by a significant margin.
Scottish Labor Housing Spokesperson Mark Griffin in question:
Scotland’s housing emergency is causing misery for families up and down the country, and this decline in house building will further fan the flames of the crisis.
Liberal Dem MSP Morven-May MacCallum “The cutting and changing of housing policy must stop,” he said. He added:
Many Scots have nowhere to live or are paying through their noses. Housing construction is going in the wrong direction and this needs to change.
Minister says it’s ‘not unusual’ to announce spending plan while delaying saying where all the money is coming from
Luke PollardA defense minister is giving interviews this morning. Speaking to Times Radio, he defended the government’s decision to defer explaining how around one third of the £15bn defense investment plan (Dip) will be funded until the budget in the autumn. He claimed that leaving gaps in spending plans like this was “not uncommon.”
He said:
We announced a £15bn increase in defense spending; This is a huge boost to our preparedness and helps us purchase the kit and equipment we need.
The Treasury has determined how £10 billion of the £15 billion extra spending power we currently have will be spent… £4.7 billion will be determined in the autumn budget. And this is not an unusual thing for governments to do.
When Rachel Reeves announced a U-turn on last summer’s cut to winter fuel payments that would cost £1.25bn, she also postponed revealing how it would be financed until later in the year in the budget.
In his interviews, Pollard also declined to comment on reports that Andy Burnham and his team were not told about the £5 billion black hole in the plans until it was announced yesterday. Pollard told the Today program that he had only seen the details of how the £15 billion would be raised yesterday and was “not involved” in discussions about the Burnham operation.
Burnham is expected to become Prime Minister in less than three weeks.
Ministers ‘furious’ over cuts to road projects to fund defense plan
At work Jessica ElgotStory about backlash over proposed road plan cuts that would fund part of the defense investment plan.
Starmer to take PMQs as he faces backlash over ‘poisoned chalice’ defense investment plan
Good morning. Yesterday Keir Starmer published his defense investment plan (Dip), arguably the last major announcement of his premiership. Today is likely to be his second final PMQ (he is expected to be at the NATO summit next Wednesday and will have his swan song on July 15) and the session will likely be dominated by Dip-related complaints.
In general, there are three separate criticisms.
1) ‘It does not increase defense spending sufficiently.’ This is what military chiefs (privately) and retired military leaders (on TV) have been saying for years. Yesterday Institute for Financial Studies actually accepted. The increase in defense spending under Labor was “significant”, a briefing said. But the problem is that last year, under pressure from Donald Trump, Keir Starmer and other NATO leaders made this commitment. Increase defense spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035 And, As IFS explainsDespite the increase announced yesterday, there is no reliable way to reach this point yet.
2) ‘It’s not even properly funded.’ Like Kiran Stacey And Dan Sabbagh As explained in the Guardian’s splash story, the Dip means a £15bn spending increase; but there is no word yet on where the money will come from to fund almost £5bn of this.
This is a problem for Andy Burnham and the chancellor, who were not informed about the black hole before the Dip was published yesterday. Last night liam foxThe former Tory defense minister said Starmer had left a “poisoned chalice” for his successor.
3) ‘And the parts that are funded are partly funded by unpopular cuts.’ Part of the Dip is being funded by the cancellation of road projects, which has angered Labor MPs whose constituencies are affected. Hamish Falconer He is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and normally ministers do not publicly criticize the government’s decisions. But he is also the MP for Lincoln and posted this last night: a message He said on social media he was “disappointed” by the threat to the A46 Newark bypass expansion plan. in the House of Commons Jonathan DaviesScrapping the A38 Derby Junctions plan would “put the brakes on economic growth”, the Mid Derbyshire MP has said. And last night Claire WardThe Labor mayor of the East Midlands has complained that his area has been disproportionately affected. She said on the Cathy Newman Show on Sky:
My complaint today is that the East Midlands appears to be the only region said to have sacrificed its road investment program to contribute to the Dip.
Here is the agenda of the day.
9.30: MPs are holding a debate in Westminster Hall on the case to ban MPs from working second jobs.
Morning: Defense Secretary Dan Jarvis is visiting Cambridgeshire.
Afternoon: Keir Starmer faces Kemi Badenoch at PMQs.
14.15: Police chiefs are giving evidence to the joint human rights committee on policing protests.
If you would like to contact me, please send a message below the line or send a message on social media during comments open hours (between 10:00 – 15:00). I can’t read all messages BTL, but if you type “Andrew” in a message addressed to me, I’m more likely to see it because I’m looking for posts containing that word.
If you want to flag something urgently, it’s best to use social media. You can reach me on Bluesky at @andrewsparrowgdn.bsky.social. The Guardian has stopped posting from their official account on
I find it very helpful for readers to point out errors, even minor typos. No mistake is too small to be corrected. I also find your questions very interesting. I can’t promise to respond to them all, but I will try to respond as much as I can, either on BTL or sometimes on the blog.
