The British Prime Minister Prime Keir Starmer is once again fighting for his political survival, on the back foot after his defence secretary and armed forces minister both quit the government over complaints of a lack of military spending and sufficient commitment to keep Britain safe from the spectre of a Russian attack.
The pair left excoriating letters of resignation. John Healey, a party loyalist who served under five Labour leaders, wrote that the UK Defence Plan fell well short of what is required for the defence of the realm at this “dangerous time”, that the prime minister was unable to commit the resources needed, and the Treasury was unwilling to. This after first seeing the detailed Defence Plan that is yet to be made public.
The departing words of armed forces minister Al Carns were: “Britain is still purchasing capability suitable for the last war, while our adversaries arm for the next one. Platforms that cost billions can be defeated by systems that cost thousands”.
Starmer is suffering the political equivalent of “rope-a-dope”: first a revolt over welfare reform, then the consequences of appointing Peter Mandelson as US ambassador, and now a leadership contest expected to start in days.
He has defended his policy on defence spending, saying he’s had to make “hard-edged decisions”.
FRANCE 24’s Gavin Lee speaks to James Sunderland, a former Conservative MP and military officer who served 26 years in the British army. He was deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as serving in Bosnia and the Falklands.
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