Badenoch to advocate putting British interests first in foreign policy speech
Kemi Badenoch will advocate putting British interests first and say it is 'not a selfish objective' to want to 'strengthen our country and to look after ourselves', as she delivers a speech on foreign policy.
The Conservative leader will also warn that there will be 'painful decisions on government spending' when it comes to funding defence.
In the address on Tuesday, Mrs Badenoch will also advocate a 'need to disengage' from international bodies if they are 'taken over by activists or by autocratic regimes like China or Russia'.
Her speech comes with diplomacy high on the agenda as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer heads to Washington this week, where he is expected to discuss Russia's war in Ukraine while also hoping to contain a growing transatlantic rift.
Mrs Badenoch will say that 'our foreign policy should seek to support our national interest' and 'sovereignty must be at the core of our foreign policy'.
'A nation state's primary purpose is to defend its borders, its values and its people,' she is expected to say.
'Our national interest is first and foremost to protect our country, to strengthen our country, and to look after ourselves. That means a strong military and a strong economy.
'That is not a selfish objective, it is realism – because you cannot help others if you cannot help yourself. Strengthening Britain must be the principal objective at the heart of everything we do.'
She is also expected to say: 'International law should not become a tool for NGOs (non-governmental organisations) and other critics to seek to advance an activist political agenda through international bodies and our domestic courts.
'And if international bodies are taken over by activists, or by autocratic regimes like China or Russia, we must use our influence to stop them. And if that fails, we will need to disengage.'
The speech – due to be delivered a day after the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine – will also touch on defence, as Mrs Badenoch will say 'we must do what it takes to protect Britain'.
'That means not just our independent nuclear deterrent, but also the ability to protect our critical national infrastructure – at home and under the sea. It means having the capability required to contribute meaningfully to Nato-led deterrence in Europe, and the new technologies for the battles of tomorrow.'
US President Donald Trump has been putting pressure on European Nato allies to increase their defence spending and shoulder more of the burden of security on the continent.
However, Mrs Badenonch is to warn that voters will not back plans if they are seen to be pitching public services against defence spending.
'If we approach this challenge as a zero-sum game – as a simple choice between defence spending and public services – we will struggle to persuade the public to back it,' the Tory leader will say.
'And there will be painful decisions on government spending. Any country that spends more interest on its debt than on defence, as the UK does today, is destined for weakness.'
Sir Keir, on his trip to Washington, is expected to discuss his calls for a US 'backstop' to a peace agreement in Ukraine, as well as defence spending.
The visit will mark a critical moment for his leadership as he seeks to balance support for Kyiv with keeping the White House on side, and the Prime Minister is under pressure to use the trip to confirm a timeline to raise UK defence spending to 2.5% of national income.
Labour accused Mrs Badenoch of being 'part of a Conservative government which hollowed out our armed forces, made us more reliant on Putin for our energy needs and diminished Britain's standing on the world stage'.
A spokesperson added: 'We will always work constructively with opposition parties in the national interest but the Conservatives must take responsibility for their record over 14 years of government.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
The treaty Gibraltar wants, for the future we all need
For over five years, Gibraltar has been at the centre of one of the most complex, technical, and geopolitically sensitive negotiations undertaken by the United Kingdom and the European Union since Brexit. The process has consumed me. It has occupied close to half of my time in elected office, taken over almost every waking hour of the last five years, and, in truth, deprived the people of Gibraltar of their Chief Minister in the way they are used to having him, that is, from fixing housing and parking complaints to defending their sovereignty in the international arena. For much longer than I would have wanted, I have been behind closed doors, in physical or virtual boardrooms, working through the details of a document that will shape the next generation of our people. It has been a relentless, exhausting endeavour. Throughout this time, the UK and Gibraltar teams have worked together seamlessly, 'hand in glove', without a flash of daylight between us. We have worked in close partnership with both Conservative and Labour prime ministers and foreign secretaries; from Dominic Raab, Liz Truss and James Cleverly to David Cameron and now David Lammy. What we have negotiated is not the product of fragmented agendas, but the position of a unified British family determined to find a solution worthy of our people. Without a treaty, Gibraltar could be staring down the barrel of a hard border, marked by endless queues, disrupted supply chains, and a deeply uncertain future for many of our businesses. Our hospitals and elderly care homes would face chronic understaffing, and the surrounding region would suffer the almost certain loss of employment for many of the 15,000 cross-border workers who depend on Gibraltar's economy to support their families. The services we deliver to our people would all come under strain. Our public finances would be pushed to the brink. The self-governing Gibraltar we have built would be diminished, replaced by something poorer, more isolated, more inward-looking, and ultimately less able to thrive as a proud, British European Territory. Instead, we now stand at the threshold of something remarkable, and not just for Gibraltar, but also for the United Kingdom, for Spain, and for Europe and our people. Something bold. Something forward looking and hopeful. Something that finally breaks free of the negative inertia that has defined too much of our recent past. Unlocking potential across borders This is politics at its most elevated. The service-led principle of working for our people's benefit and not the performative personal antagonism that too often infects public life. Real, hard graft that overcomes challenges to deliver progress. This is the kind of result our people demand when they voice distrust and decry the political 'establishment'. Our Spanish and EU counterparts, for their part, have brought to the table a seriousness of purpose that also reflects the gravity of the moment. They, too, have recognised that this treaty is not merely about fluidity of movement, but about unlocking human and economic potential across borders. Make no mistake: the treaty that is now within reach is not one that the Gibraltarians have been forced to accept. Our people voted for us to have a mandate to turn our New Year's Eve agreement of 2020 into a UK/EU agreement/treaty. So we say 'yes' to this agreement, but not because we don't know how to say 'no' when we have to. We did so, emphatically, in 2002, when we triggered a referendum to reject Jack Straw's proposal of joint sovereignty with Spain, and I am just as adamant today that this treaty will not in any way compromise British sovereignty over Gibraltar. That will be set out, black upon white, in the treaty when it is published. It is a legal undertaking given by both sides in clear and unequivocal terms. So to be clear: in this treaty we have not ceded any control of Gibraltar to any authority. Just like today, only Gibraltar will decide who enters Gibraltar – exactly as we agreed in 2020 when Dominic Raab was foreign secretary and Boris Johnson was prime minister. This treaty unleashes the potential to usher in a new era. One in which we move beyond the tired narratives of the past on constant sovereignty disputes, towards a future defined by hope, cooperation and shared prosperity. It will pave the way for better jobs, more investment and lasting stability for Gibraltar and the wider region. It can deliver more harmonious human relations and a better quality of life for all our people. When you read it, I ask that you to look up from the pages of this treaty and see that better reality as it peers back at us from the future. This will be the treaty Gibraltar wants. It will be a treaty the UK and the EU can be proud of. And it will be a treaty that will propel us all to the better future politicians are elected to deliver. When the time comes, back Gibraltar and its proudly British people by backing the Gibraltar treaty.
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
Rachel Reeves pumps cash into NHS with 4m more tests and procedures to cut waits
The NHS and defence were big winners from the Chancellor's Spending Review as Rachel Reeves set out the Government's spending plans for the rest of the decade Rachel Reeves turned on the spending taps today with a £300billion package to renew Britain. The Chancellor said "destructive" Tory austerity had inflicted misery on ordinary Brits and damaged the economy, and vowed: "My choices are different". The NHS and defence were big winners from the Spending Review as Ms Reeves set out the Government's spending plans for the rest of the decade. The NHS was handed an extra £29billion-a-year, a 3% increase for day-to-day running costs over the next three years. Tonight, the Chancellor promised up to 4 million additional NHS tests and procedures would be delivered over the next five years to help slash waiting lists. New scanners, more community diagnostic centres, ambulances and Urgent Treatment Centres will be put in place, with increased capacity in community care to reduce pressure on hospitals. The Chancellor pumped an additional £190billion into day-to-day spending, with Government budgets set to grow by 2.3% per year across the period 2023/24 to 2028/29. And she announced £113billion for infrastructure projects, including £39billion for affordable homes over the next decade, £15.6billion for transport networks outside of London and £16.7billion for nuclear power. Some £30 billion will also be invested over the next five years in maintenance and repair of the crumbling NHS estate, with more than £5 billion dedicated to the most critical repairs. Keir Starmer told the Cabinet that it marked "the end of the first phase of this government, as we move to a new phase that delivers on the promise of change for working people". In a statement to MPs, Ms Reeves said her plans were a far cry from Tory austerity, where public spending was cut by 2.9% per year in 2010. She said: "Let's be clear, austerity was a destructive choice for the fabric of our society. And it was a destructive choice for our economy too, choking off investment and demand, creating a lost decade for growth, wages and living standards." She added: "My choices are different. My choices are Labour choices. The choices in this spending review are possible only because of my commitment to economic stability and the decisions that this Government has made." Ms Reeves said Labour was "renewing Britain", adding: 'I know that too many people in too many parts of our country are yet to feel it. This Government's task, my task as chancellor, and the purpose of this spending review is to change that, to ensure that renewal is felt in people's everyday lives, in their jobs and on their high streets." Defence spending will hit 2.6% of GDP by 2027 - including cash for intelligence - made up by a raid on the foreign aid budget. But no details were given on when the Prime Minister will meet his ambition of hiking it to 3%. A massive £86billion will be spent on the science and technology sector by the end of this Parliament, including funding research into drug treatments. The Chancellor also promised to set out plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), a scheme to improve rail services between Liverpool and Leeds. There was also £3.5 billion more funding for the TransPennine Route Upgrade between York and Manchester, as well as £445million for rail in Wales over the next 10 years, and funding for a new line between Oxford and Cambridge. Schools will see their budgets swell by £2 billion, with per pupil funding to grow by 1.1% a year. Some £2.3 billion per year will go to fixing "crumbling classrooms" and £2.4 billion per year to rebuild 500 schools. But the Institute for Fiscal Studies warned that paying for an expansion of free school meals to another 500,000 children whose families claim Universal Credit next year means a real terms freeze to school funding. Labour will stop housing asylum seekers in hotels by the end of this Parliament, saving the taxpayer £1billion a year. But policing is expected to feel the squeeze as the Home Office grapples with cuts exceeding the asylum savings. The National Police Chiefs' Council warned a projected £1.2 billion shortfall in funding is expected to grow, leaving forces facing further cuts. There will also be £7 billion to fund 14,000 new prison places and up to £700 million per year for probation reforms. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Transport and Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are all in line for real-terms cuts. Much of the funding has been front-loaded to the start of this Parliament, which means the average increase falls to around 1.5% from 2025-26. Stephen Millard, interim director of the NIESR economic research institute, said: "The Chancellor has yet again said that her fiscal rules are 'non-negotiable'. But, given the small amount of headroom at the time of the spring statement and the increases in spending announced since then, it is now almost inevitable that if she is to keep to her fiscal rules, she will have to raise taxes in the autumn budget." Health leaders said the cash boost for the NHS would not guarantee waiting time targets can be met. Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, warned that "difficult decisions will still need to be made as this additional £29 billion won't be enough to cover the increasing cost of new treatments, with staff pay likely to account for a large proportion of it".
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Fact check: 2025 spending review claims
We've taken a look at some of the key claims. How much is spending increasing by? At the start of her speech Ms Reeves announced that 'total departmental budgets will grow by 2.3% a year in real terms'. That headline figure doesn't tell the full story, however. Firstly, 2.3% is the average annual real-terms growth in total departmental budgets between 2023/24 and 2028/29. That means it includes spending changes that have already been implemented, for both the current (2025/26) and previous (2024/25) financial years. The average annual increase between this year and 2028/29 is 1.5%. Therefore, as the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said, 'most departments will have larger real-terms budgets at the end of the Parliament than the beginning, but in many cases much of that extra cash will have arrived by April'. Secondly, it's worth noting that the 2.3% figure includes both day-to-day (Resource DEL) and investment (Capital DEL) spending. Capital spending (which funds things like infrastructure projects) is increasing by 3.6% a year on average in real terms between 2023/24 and 2029/30, and by 1.8% between 2025/26 and 2029/30. Day-to-day departmental budgets meanwhile are seeing a smaller average annual real-terms increase – of 1.7% between 2023/24 and 2028/29 and 1.2% between 2025/26 and 2028/29. Which departments are the winners and losers? Ms Reeves touted substantial spending increases in some areas (for example, the 3% rise in day-to-day NHS spending in England), but unsurprisingly her statement did not focus on areas where spending will decrease. Changes to Government spending are not uniform across all departments, and alongside increases in spending on things like the NHS, defence and the justice system, a number of Government departments will see their budgets decrease in real terms. Departments facing real-terms reductions in overall and day-to-day spending include the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (this factors in reductions in aid spending announced earlier this year to offset increased defence spending), the Home Office (although the Government says the Home Office's budget grows in real terms if a planned reduction in asylum spending is excluded) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Did the Conservatives leave a '£22 billion black hole'? Ms Reeves made a claim we've heard a number of times since it first surfaced in July 2024 – that the previous Conservative government left a '£22 billion black hole in the public finances'. That figure comes from a Treasury audit that forecast a £22 billion overspend in departmental day-to-day spending in 2024/25, but the extent to which it was unexpected or inherited is disputed. The IFS said last year that some of the pressures the Government claimed contributed to this so-called 'black hole' could have been anticipated, but others did 'indeed seem to be greater than could be discerned from the outside'. An Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) review of its March 2024 forecast found an estimated £9.5 billion of additional spending pressures were known to the Treasury at that point in time, but were not known to the OBR as it prepared its forecast. It's true that this review didn't confirm the £22 billion figure, but it also did not necessarily prove that it was incorrect, because Labour's figure included pressures which were identified after the OBR prepared its forecast and so were beyond the scope of the OBR's review. We've written more about how the Government reached the figure of £22 billion in our explainer on this topic. How big is the increase in NHS appointments? Ms Reeves took the opportunity to congratulate Health Secretary Wes Streeting for delivering 'three-and-a-half million extra' hospital appointments in England. The Government has previously celebrated this as a 'massive increase', particularly in light of its manifesto pledge to deliver an extra two million appointments a year. Ms Reeves' claim was broadly accurate – data published last month shows there were 3.6 million additional appointments between July 2024 and February 2025 compared to the previous year. But importantly that increase is actually smaller than the 4.2 million rise that happened in the equivalent period the year before, under the Conservative government – as data obtained by Full Fact under the Freedom of Information Act and published last month revealed. What do announcements on asylum hotels, policing, nurseries and more mean for the Government's pledges? Ms Reeves made a number of announcements that appear to directly impact the delivery of several pre-existing Labour pledges, many of which we're already monitoring in our Government Tracker. (We'll be updating the tracker to reflect these announcements in due course, and reviewing how we rate progress on pledges as necessary). The Chancellor announced an average increase in 'police spending power' of 2.3% a year in real terms over the course of the review period, which she said was the equivalent of an additional £2 billion. However, as police budgets comprise a mix of central Government funding and local council tax receipts, some of this extra spending is expected to be funded by increases in council tax precepts. Ms Reeves said this funding would help the Government achieve its commitment of 'putting 13,000 additional police officers, PCSOs and special constables into neighbourhood policing roles in England and Wales', a pledge we're monitoring here. The spending review also includes funding of 'almost £370 million across the next four years to support the Government's commitment to deliver school-based nurseries across England', which Ms Reeves said would help the Government deliver its pledge to have 'a record number of children being school-ready'. The Chancellor also committed to ending the use of hotels to house asylum seekers by the end of this Parliament, with an additional £200 million announced to 'accelerate the transformation of the asylum system'. When we looked last month at progress on the Government's pledge to 'end asylum hotels' we said it appeared off track, as figures showed the number of asylum seekers housed in hotels was higher at the end of March 2025 than it was when Labour came into Government.
