UK lacks plan to defend itself from invasion, MPs warn
Britain has no plan to protect itself against military attack, a committee of MPs has warned.
In an extremely critical situation reportBritain is overly reliant on US resources and preparations to defend itself and overseas territories in the event of attack are “nowhere near where they need to be”, the defense committee said.
Labor MP Tan Dhesi, chair of the committee, said: “Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, relentless disinformation campaigns and repeated attacks on European airspace mean we cannot afford to stick our heads in the sand.”
This comes as the Ministry of Defense (MoD) identified areas in the country where six or more new munitions factories could be built.
In June, Defense Secretary John Healey announced plans to move the UK to “war readiness”, including £1.5 billion to support the construction of new munitions factories to be built by private contractors.
The government wants the UK to have an “always on” ammunition production capacity that can be scaled up rapidly.
In his speech on Wednesday, Healey will confirm plans to restart energy production (explosives, pyrotechnics and propellants) in the UK.
For the last twenty years, the Ministry of Defense has been procuring these materials from abroad.
Healey will say at least 1,000 new jobs will be created by Britain increasing its munitions production.
The government wants at least six new factories to be operational by the next election in 2029, and hopes to start work on the first of them next year.
The Ministry of Defense is investigating 13 sites where it believes new factories could be built and naming the areas in the UK where they are located.
There are three potential sites in Scotland: Dumfriesshire, Ayrshire and Grangemouth, Stirlingshire.
In England, a total of eight sites were allocated, in Teesside, Cumbria, Shropshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Essex, Worcestershire and Hampshire, and in Wales two sites were allocated in Monmouthshire and Milford Haven in Pembrokeshire.
Healey will also announce the opening of two new drone factories in Plymouth and Swindon this week.
“We are making defense an engine of growth by openly supporting British jobs and British skills, while making the UK more fight-ready and better able to deter future conflicts,” the defense secretary will say.
“This is the path that ensures national and economic security.”
The government announced earlier this year that Britain’s defense spending would rise to 3% of GDP by 2034 at the latest.
But the defense committee warned that Britain and its European NATO allies were overly dependent on the US and did not spend enough on their own defence.
“We are therefore calling on the government to consider where the UK could replace US capabilities should they withdraw,” Dhesi said.
“Accelerating the pace of industrial change is crucial and preparedness must be at the top of this government’s agenda.”
He said the committee had “repeatedly heard concerns about the UK’s ability to defend itself against attack”.
It calls on the government to urgently strengthen the UK’s conventional and nuclear capabilities and improve joint working with NATO allies.
He is particularly critical of what he calls the “glacial pace” of promised improvements in civil defense and resilience, and says the UK may fail to deliver on its ambitions. NATO Article 3 obligations “To protect and develop individual and collective capacity against armed attack”.
Dhesi said the government must also fulfill its promise to communicate better with the public about “the level of threat we face and what to expect in the event of conflict.”
“Wars are won not just by generals, but by the entire people standing behind the Armed Forces and doing our part,” he added.
