Latest news with #defencereview
News24
03-06-2025
- Business
- News24
UK shifts to ‘war-fighting readiness', plans to build 12 new submarines
The UK is set to boost military spending. Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the country was moving to a 'war-fighting readiness'. Britain will also build 12 new attack submarines. Britain announced it will build 12 new attack submarines as it launched a major defence review Monday to move the country to 'war-fighting readiness' in the face of 'Russian aggression' and the changing nature of conflict. Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned that 'the threat we now face is more serious, more immediate and more unpredictable than at any time since the Cold War,' as he launched the review in Glasgow. 'We face war in Europe, new nuclear risks, daily cyber-attacks, growing Russian aggression in our waters, menacing our skies,' he added. The Strategic Defence Review, which assesses threats facing the UK and makes recommendations, said that Britain is entering 'a new era of threat'. As a result, Starmer said his government aimed to deliver three 'fundamental changes'. 'First, we are moving to war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces,' he said. Every part of society, every citizen of this country, has a role to play, because we have to recognise that things have changed in the world of today. The front-line, if you like, is here. Keir Starmer Secondly, the prime minister insisted that UK defence policy will 'always be NATO first', and finally that the UK 'will innovate and accelerate innovation at a wartime pace so we can meet the threats of today and of tomorrow.' The UK has been racing to rearm in the face of the threat from Russia and fears that US President Donald Trump will no longer help protect Europe. Starmer said it would serve as 'a blueprint for strength and security for decades to come', taking into account the increasing use of drones and artificial intelligence on the battlefield. Henry Nicholls/Pool/AFP His government pledged in February to lift defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 in the 'largest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War'. And despite budget constraints, it aims for spending to rise to 3% in the next parliamentary term, due in 2029. The Labour government has said it will cut UK overseas aid to help fund the spending. Based on the recommendations of the review, which was led by former NATO secretary general George Robertson, the government said on Sunday that it would boost stockpiles and weapons production capacity, which could be scaled up if needed. This includes £1.5 billion ($2 billion) for building 'at least six munitions and energetics factories', procuring 7 000 domestically built long-range weapons, and spending £6 billion on munitions over the current parliamentary term. The government also said late on Sunday that it would build up to 12 new attack submarines as part of its AUKUS military alliance with Australia and the US. Andy Buchanan/AFP Currently the UK is set to operate seven nuclear-powered Astute Class attack submarines, which will be replaced by the 12 AUKUS submarines from the late 2030s. The defence ministry also said it would invest £15 billion in its nuclear warhead programme and last week pledged £1 billion for the creation of a 'cyber command' to help on the battlefield. The last such defence review was commissioned in 2021 by the previous Conservative government, and was revised in 2023 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While launching the new review, Robertson said it would tackle threats from Russia, China, Iran and North Korea, calling them a 'deadly quartet'. But in an op-ed article for The Sun newspaper, Starmer did not mention China, while warning that 'The Kremlin is working hand in hand with its cronies in Iran and North Korea.' The softer rhetoric on China is in line with the Labour government's efforts to thaw relations with Beijing, which reached new lows under former prime minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative government. The review describes Russia as an 'immediate and pressing' threat, but calls China a 'sophisticated and persistent challenge', according to The Guardian. At a time when Washington is demanding that its NATO allies bolster their own defences, Britain is considering strengthening its deterrent by buying nuclear-missile capable aircraft from the US, The Sunday Times reported.
The Independent
02-06-2025
- General
- The Independent
Watch: Furious Lindsay Hoyle scolds Keir Starmer over defence review ‘leaks'
Sir Lindsay Hoyle accused the government of committing a 'blatant breach' of the ministerial code over how it released details of a major defence review on Monday, 2 June. The Speaker took exception to details of the strategic defence review (SDR) being briefed out over the weekend and Sir Keir Starmer holding a media event several hours before the document was published in Parliament. Making it clear that the House of Commons, rather than the media, should be informed first, Sir Lindsay said of Labour: 'This shows complete disregard for the House and for the honourable members.' "The government appears to have breached the principle set out in paragraph 9.1 of the ministerial code – that when Parliament is in session, the most important announcements of government policy should be made in the first instance in Parliament.'
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Britain is planning a 'Dad's Army-style home guard' to protect airports and power plants against terror attacks - with thousands to be recruited
A Dad's Army-style home guard could be set up to protect airports and power plants against attack from terrorists and enemy states, it was claimed last night. Modelled on the famous citizens' militia created in the 1940s to face up the threat of invasion by Nazi Germany, it would reportedly be made up of several thousand volunteers who would safeguard key national assets. Plans for a new force of modern-day Captain Mainwarings and Sergeant Wilsons are said to be a key part of the Government's forthcoming strategic defence review. Details of how the new home guard would be recruited and operate would be worked up by the Ministry of Defence in the coming months. But it would apparently be separate from existing organisations, such as the army reserves. The Sunday Times reported that the defence review will focus heavily on home security, national resilience and the need for the public to realise that Britain had entered a 'pre-war era' as tensions rise with Russia and its allies. The long-awaited study, led by former Nato secretary general and Labour peer Lord Robertson, is also understood to call for greater air defence against enemy missiles. But it is also expected to recommend a dramatic increase in the use of high-tech drones and unmanned vehicles to learn the lessons of the current conflict between Ukraine and Russia. Drones are already increasingly used in the Armed Forces mainly for close surveillance. But the Mail on Sunday was told that the defence review, to be published within weeks, would recommend a radical expansion of their use which would potentially involve equipping the Royal Navy with a squadron of unmanned planes operating from one of its carriers. The RAF would get the ability to deploy laser-armed swarming drones deployed from the new Tempest fighter jet. And the Army would be given a new drones regiment, with troops also getting new long-range artillery. Two weeks ago, Defence Secretary John Healey hinted at the changes as he said on X that 'we've seen warfare changing [and] we are now learning the lessons from Ukraine'. And standing in front of a Eurofighter Typhoon, he spoke of how 'traditional, state-of-the-art fighter jets like this' would be 'working in future with drones you can put together in five minutes'. But last night, Tory defence spokesman James Cartlidge warned: 'If we are about to see this vital new investment in our nation's defences, it's not before time. 'But Labour's record so far has been penny-pinching over actual, necessary procurement.' There are claims that the defence review will fail to live up to the Government's boast that it was a 'root and branch' examination of the military's real future needs, with some key procurement decisions postponed till the Autumn. The Ministry of Defence said reports of major new investment in drones were 'speculation'. But a spokesman added that the defence review 'sets out a path for the next decade to transform the Armed Forces to ensure we're prepared for emerging threats - making Britain secure at home and strong abroad'.
