UK faces ‘£28bn defence funding shortfall’, top military chief warns Starmer
The Prime Minister has reportedly been told the Ministry of Defense faces a £28bn funding gap for the next four years, just days after he pledged to send British troops to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal.
Britain’s top military chief, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, is said to have told Sir Keir at a meeting before Christmas – attended by the chancellor and defense secretary – that a Ministry of Defense assessment showed a funding gap of £28bn between now and 2030.
The Prime Minister vowed last year to make Britain “war ready” but despite warnings of the threat of an increasingly aggressive Russia, defense plans have been overshadowed by a row over money.
Latest statements in the report TimesIt is thought to have prompted Sir Keir to order an overhaul of the defense investment plan (Dip), which was first expected in the autumn.
But a government source insisted the UK was “on the right track” to meet commitments set out in the review.
Sir Richard took over as Chief of the Defense Staff in September and is responsible for delivering the strategic defense review published in June.
Britain has pledged to increase defense spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027 in a bid to close gaps in Britain’s struggling military.
The review also set out a target of increasing spending to three per cent in the next Parliament “when financial and economic conditions permit”. But recent statements raise questions about whether the targets are achievable.
This comes at a time of rising global instability, with the US president storming into Caracas and capturing the Venezuelan president, and just days after Britain and France signed a historic agreement with Russia committing to the deployment of military troops in Ukraine as soon as any ceasefire comes into force.
The document, signed by French President Emmanuel Macron, Sir Keir and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the summit in Paris, was praised as a “significant step forward” in ensuring Kiev has security guarantees that will deter a future Russian invasion.
British bases and military personnel also supported a US operation on Wednesday to seize an oil tanker in the Atlantic said to be part of a “shadow fleet” trying to evade sanctions on Iranian oil.
Sir Keir met US President Donald Trump for the second time on Thursday; The two discussed the threat posed to the “High North” by an “increasingly aggressive” Russia.
A Ministry of Defense spokesperson said Independent: “The UK’s defense budget is soaring to record levels as this government delivers the biggest increase in defense spending since the Cold War, totaling £270bn in this parliament alone.
“Defense demands are also increasing as Russia’s aggression increases, operational requirements increase, and preparations for the deployment of Ukraine increase.
“We are working hard on the Defense Investment Plan, which will fix the outdated, overcommitted and underfunded defense program we inherited.”
