UK’s Starmer announces 300-billion-pound defence investment plan
Plan includes more than 5 billion pounds for drones and autonomous systems over four years, Ministry of Defence says.
Outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that Britain will spend almost 300 billion pounds ($397bn) over the next four years to modernise its armed forces amid rising threats.
Starmer, expected to leave office next month after losing the support of Labour MPs, announced on Tuesday that the overall defence budget would increase by 15 billion pounds ($20bn) over the next four years to almost 300 billion pounds as he launched his long-awaited defence investment plan.
“Last year I made the decision in the national interest to reprioritise aid spending towards defence and achieved the biggest uplift in defence spending since the end of the Cold War,” Starmer said.
“That was the right choice because the world has changed. National security is economic security.
“Today we uplift defence spending further – an additional 15 billion pounds worth of funding – by … reprioritising spending across government.”
The plan includes more than 5 billion pounds ($6.6bn) for drones and autonomous systems over the next four years, the Ministry of Defence said in a news release.
The announcement followed months of wrangling within Starmer’s Labour government over the resources required to modernise the United Kingdom’s armed forces in the face of rising threats, including from Russia.
Two defence ministers quit this month in a row over the spending proposals, including Defence Secretary John Healey, who said the plans risked making Britain “less safe”.
Starmer’s pledge came as United States President Donald Trump has repeatedly urged NATO allies to spend more on defence and become less reliant on Washington for security.
Starmer will take the plan, which foresees spending nearly 80 billion pounds ($105.7bn) a year by 2029, to Ankara for a NATO summit on July 7-8. He wants to signal Britain is on track to spend 3.5 percent of its gross domestic product on defence by 2035.
With likely successor Andy Burnham due to take power as early as July 20, Starmer acknowledged new governments could “build” on his blueprint.
Critics said the plan, delayed for more than nine months, was too little, too late.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗
Keir Starmer, the UK Prime Minister set to leave office next month, announced a 300 billion pound defence investment plan spanning four years. The budget includes an additional 15 billion pounds in new spending, bringing annual defence expenditure to nearly 80 billion pounds by 2029. The plan dedicates over 5 billion pounds to drone and autonomous systems development. Starmer stated the increase reflects changed global conditions and framed national security as integral to economic security. The government will fund this through reallocation across government spending rather than new taxation. Two defence ministers resigned this month citing concerns the proposals were insufficient for UK security. Starmer intends to present the plan at a NATO summit in Ankara on 7–8 July, before his likely successor Andy Burnham assumes office around 20 July. The plan targets defence spending at 3.5 percent of GDP by 2035.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗
Plan includes more than 5 billion pounds for drones and autonomous systems over four years, Ministry of Defence says.
Outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that Britain will spend almost 300 billion pounds ($397bn) over the next four years to modernise its armed forces amid rising threats.
Starmer, expected to leave office next month after losing the support of Labour MPs, announced on Tuesday that the overall defence budget would increase by 15 billion pounds ($20bn) over the next four years to almost 300 billion pounds as he launched his long-awaited defence investment plan.
“Last year I made the decision in the national interest to reprioritise aid spending towards defence and achieved the biggest uplift in defence spending since the end of the Cold War,” Starmer said.
“That was the right choice because the world has changed. National security is economic security.
“Today we uplift defence spending further – an additional 15 billion pounds worth of funding – by … reprioritising spending across government.”
The plan includes more than 5 billion pounds ($6.6bn) for drones and autonomous systems over the next four years, the Ministry of Defence said in a news release.
The announcement followed months of wrangling within Starmer’s Labour government over the resources required to modernise the United Kingdom’s armed forces in the face of rising threats, including from Russia.
Two defence ministers quit this month in a row over the spending proposals, including Defence Secretary John Healey, who said the plans risked making Britain “less safe”.
Starmer’s pledge came as United States President Donald Trump has repeatedly urged NATO allies to spend more on defence and become less reliant on Washington for security.
Starmer will take the plan, which foresees spending nearly 80 billion pounds ($105.7bn) a year by 2029, to Ankara for a NATO summit on July 7-8. He wants to signal Britain is on track to spend 3.5 percent of its gross domestic product on defence by 2035.
With likely successor Andy Burnham due to take power as early as July 20, Starmer acknowledged new governments could “build” on his blueprint.
Critics said the plan, delayed for more than nine months, was too little, too late.
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗
Keir Starmer announced a 300 billion pound defence budget increase over four years The plan includes an additional 15 billion pounds in new defence spending Over 5 billion pounds is allocated for drones and autonomous systems over four years Two defence ministers resigned this month over the spending proposals National security is economic security The plan targets 3.5 percent of GDP spending on defence by 2035 The plan was delayed for more than nine months Critics said the plan was too little, too late
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗
- UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a 300 billion pound defence budget over four years, including a new 15 billion pound increase
- The plan allocates over 5 billion pounds for drones and autonomous systems and targets 3.5% of GDP spending on defence by 2035
- Two defence ministers resigned this month over spending disagreements; Starmer will present the plan at a NATO summit before leaving office in July
- The spending increase follows months of internal government debate and pressure from NATO allies to boost defence investment