Boris Johnson is facing political pressure on all sides to re-examine the U.K.’s military spending levels as ex-minister Lord Frost led Tory demands for an increase in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. MailOnline has the story.
Lord Frost attacked “many years of Western unseriousness about foreign and defence policy” as Labour’s Keir Starmer also demanded a review of policy.
Frost, until last year the U.K.’s Brexit Secretary, said inaction allowed Vladimir Putin to think he could “try it on”. The former minister joined with other ex-Cabinet members including Michael Fallon to back a 25% increase in defence spending.
Their intervention comes as NATO allies look at their own spending and European nations close to Russia geographically consider joining.
Germany is to plough 100 billion euros into a new defence procurement fund and raise overall spending above 2% of GDP for the first time in decades.
At the same time Finland and Sweden are said to have begun looking at the possibility of joining NATO.
Writing in the Sunday Telegraph today, Lord Frost said: “We are going to have to spend more on defence and that will mean tough choices. We need to reform and liberalise so that investment keeps coming.”
Sir Michael Fallon, who was Defence Secretary under David Cameron and Theresa May, added: “In 1999, long before 9/11, before Russian aggression, before Kim Jong-il had nuclear missiles, we were spending 2.7%.”
“[My] only criticism of last year’s integrated review [of security and defence] was that its ambition wasn’t matched by significant further uplift.
“I absolutely welcome both the review and the previous very welcome increase in 2020. But its ambition wasn’t matched by a further increase building beyond 2.5% by the end of the Parliament. That’s the kind of ambition we need.”
Sir Keir said there needs to be a review of defence policy and spending, with Labour having also previously attacked wasted money in military procurement.
Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday Morning programme, Sir Keir said: “I think there does need to be a step back and review of defence policy because this has, I think, blown away some of the assumptions the Government was working on.”
Sir Keir said the Labour Party has been critical of the Government for cutting back the army by another 10,000 soldiers, noting “as we have said, we wouldn’t have done that”.
Worth reading in full.
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.