Dan Jarvis is a fine choice for defence secretary – but how long will he last?
KWhen prime ministers face international crises, they sometimes call on the best military minds at their disposal to help them solve the problem.
With Keir Starmer facing another political crisis, this time with the resignation of defense secretary John Healey, it seems appropriate that he could turn to a former SAS commander to help extricate him from this hopeless situation.
Barnsley North MP Dan Jarvis had a very distinguished career as a military commander in Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq and Northern Ireland; he witnessed action on many occasions and served in the United Kingdom’s most elite forces.
He was a paratrooper who led major operations and spoke with real authority on defense matters.
When he applied to be the Labor candidate for the Barnsley North seat, someone reportedly asked him how many leaflets he had distributed. The question was probably designed to reveal a lack of political participation.
His response was to admit that he did not publish many leaflets but did take troops to Afghanistan’s Helmand Province. The election party has clearly won.
So while people were questioning the prime minister’s commitment to defense spending with the resignations of Healey and former Royal Marines commander Al Carns, turning to Jarvis was the perfect solution.
It is no surprise that even Tories who served with him, such as Tobias Ellwood and Tom Tugendhat, welcomed his appointment as defense minister.
Jarvis also has significant political experience; He held various shadow cabinet posts under Ed Miliband before becoming South Yorkshire’s metro mayor from 2018-22. He returned to Westminster in 2024 and immediately became security minister.
But even someone as qualified as Jarvis will struggle to save a prime minister whose government appears to be in its death throes. He will also have the unenviable task of justifying the failure to properly fund defense.
Perhaps the defense fund is a pill Jarvis can swallow knowing that there will likely be a new prime minister by the summer and that his term will last only a few weeks.
Ultimately, a new prime minister and chancellor will look again at the defense spending plan and decisions taken now may not mean much.
There is another game here. Jarvis could do the same thing that Ben Wallace did for the Conservative Party. Wallace survived as defense minister despite multiple changes of prime minister because he was widely loved and respected.
Don’t be surprised if Jarvis stays in charge if Andy Burnham or Wes Streeting takes over from Starmer.
