James Cartlidge is Shadow Defence Secretary and has been MP for South Suffolk since 2015
War in Europe; conflict in the Middle East, surely this is the time to be standing by our armed forces with the funding they need? Apparently not, because despite the gathering global storm, the Government is doing the opposite.
In Parliament this week, Defence Secretary John Healy signalled to me clearer than ever that promises made by Labour to get Defence spending to 2.5% of GDP were not worth the paper they were written on. In an attempted sleight of hand, Labour Ministers’ language for their timeline has gone from stating last month that they would deliver 2.5% ‘as soon as possible’, to now saying they will do so ‘in due course’.
This really matters.
Translated, this means that – despite Russian aggression and Iran’s missile assault on Israel – Labour are backtracking on 2.5%. Their speed has gone from urgent to… vague; deprioritised. The long grass.
Indeed, John Healey’s evasive answers to me on 2.5% showed not only that Labour really are backtracking, but that the only argument they have to fall back on is to blame us for their ‘inheritance’. We should remember that if the budget deficit of 4.4% that Labour inherited from us in July had been as bad as the 10.3% figure they bequeathed us in 2010, today’s deficit would be larger by a factor of £160 billion – that’s not far off last year’s NHS budget in England.
The fact is, once we sorted the terrible mess we inherited in 2010 when even Labour told us ‘there’s no money left’, Rishi Sunak as Chancellor oversaw the largest increase in Defence spending since the cold war.
Then, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – when our Government uniquely showed the leadership internationally to help keep Ukraine in the fight – we recognised the urgent need to replenish our own munitions, with so many rightly provided to the Ukrainians. That’s why in April we set out a funded plan to get to 2.5% by 2030, funded by reducing the civil service to its pre-pandemic size.
Most importantly, I know from being the Minister for Defence Procurement up to the election that the financial detail of our pathway to 2.5% would have stabilised the MOD’s finances, and enabled us to rebuild fighting strength. This means we could have started ordering the appropriate quantities of kit to restore our war readiness; in the process, firing up the UK defence industry – given the crucial need to compete with our adversaries’ arms manufacturing output.
Whereas, Labour has ruled out scaling back the civil service. They are prioritising a bigger state over a stronger military for our nation.
Of course, Defence is an area which must be about the national interest, above politics. That’s why at Defence questions this week I assured John Healy that he would have our total support if he confirmed he was banging on the Treasury’s door to demand more spending.
But he was unable to confirm that this is what he is doing. As politicians charged with the supreme responsibility of Defence of the realm, as an absolute minimum we should be fighting to fund our forces, given what we expect them to do for us.
Yes, the Government has launched its much-vaunted Strategic Defence Review. In my response I emphasised not just the urgent need to get to 2.5%, but also the equal importance of ensuring that money is well spent, i.e. reform of the MOD itself.
That means building on the procurement reforms I introduced in Government so that we get more bang for our buck and keep technological pace with our adversaries. Instead of programmes taking years, the Integrated Procurement Model I announced in February – and live since April – is about driving pace in acquisition so that we enhance our near term lethality.
For those who scoff that they’ve ‘heard it all before’, when I became aware that the DragonFire laser could give us a highly competitive way to respond to the threat of cheap drones facing our naval ships in the Red Sea, I scrapped a whole load of red tape hoops we would have had to jump through. Instead of lengthy procurement, we are going for the new standard of ‘Minimum Deployable Capability’ from 2027.
We need to use this approach across the full gamut of procurement, as far as possible.
Alongside the lethality of our existing forces, funded by a clear pathway to 2.5%, we must also prioritise our people. But, again, just when retention should be the Government’s top personnel priority, they are introducing a tax on education that means many armed forces families could have to reconsider serving their nation.
With the services comes constant relocation and disruption for the children in military families. For a child to have the best start in life, continuity of relationships with teachers and friends in school is essential.
Many service personnel therefore depend heavily on boarding schools for practical reasons. Whilst some of the fees are partly covered, because the Government recognises serving personnel need the continuity boarding schools provide, many will not be able to afford the hike in prices.
This will be particularly damaging for those experienced personnel who will be most affected by this seismic change. That’s why I’m calling for the children of those who serve in the armed services to be exempted from Education VAT.
Of course, in an ideal world Labour would think again about the entire education tax. But with the majority they have we need to accept the new tax is on its way, whilst appealing for a wholly justified exemption for those who serve our country to keep us safe.
The good news is it’s not too late for Labour to change tack.
The Budget is just a fortnight away and the Government must now recognise the urgent need to back our armed forces with two key measures on October 30th: setting a clear pathway to 2.5% and protecting forces’ families from VAT on school fees.
James Cartlidge is Shadow Defence Secretary and has been MP for South Suffolk since 2015
War in Europe; conflict in the Middle East, surely this is the time to be standing by our armed forces with the funding they need? Apparently not, because despite the gathering global storm, the Government is doing the opposite.
In Parliament this week, Defence Secretary John Healy signalled to me clearer than ever that promises made by Labour to get Defence spending to 2.5% of GDP were not worth the paper they were written on. In an attempted sleight of hand, Labour Ministers’ language for their timeline has gone from stating last month that they would deliver 2.5% ‘as soon as possible’, to now saying they will do so ‘in due course’.
This really matters.
Translated, this means that – despite Russian aggression and Iran’s missile assault on Israel – Labour are backtracking on 2.5%. Their speed has gone from urgent to… vague; deprioritised. The long grass.
Indeed, John Healey’s evasive answers to me on 2.5% showed not only that Labour really are backtracking, but that the only argument they have to fall back on is to blame us for their ‘inheritance’. We should remember that if the budget deficit of 4.4% that Labour inherited from us in July had been as bad as the 10.3% figure they bequeathed us in 2010, today’s deficit would be larger by a factor of £160 billion – that’s not far off last year’s NHS budget in England.
The fact is, once we sorted the terrible mess we inherited in 2010 when even Labour told us ‘there’s no money left’, Rishi Sunak as Chancellor oversaw the largest increase in Defence spending since the cold war.
Then, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – when our Government uniquely showed the leadership internationally to help keep Ukraine in the fight – we recognised the urgent need to replenish our own munitions, with so many rightly provided to the Ukrainians. That’s why in April we set out a funded plan to get to 2.5% by 2030, funded by reducing the civil service to its pre-pandemic size.
Most importantly, I know from being the Minister for Defence Procurement up to the election that the financial detail of our pathway to 2.5% would have stabilised the MOD’s finances, and enabled us to rebuild fighting strength. This means we could have started ordering the appropriate quantities of kit to restore our war readiness; in the process, firing up the UK defence industry – given the crucial need to compete with our adversaries’ arms manufacturing output.
Whereas, Labour has ruled out scaling back the civil service. They are prioritising a bigger state over a stronger military for our nation.
Of course, Defence is an area which must be about the national interest, above politics. That’s why at Defence questions this week I assured John Healy that he would have our total support if he confirmed he was banging on the Treasury’s door to demand more spending.
But he was unable to confirm that this is what he is doing. As politicians charged with the supreme responsibility of Defence of the realm, as an absolute minimum we should be fighting to fund our forces, given what we expect them to do for us.
Yes, the Government has launched its much-vaunted Strategic Defence Review. In my response I emphasised not just the urgent need to get to 2.5%, but also the equal importance of ensuring that money is well spent, i.e. reform of the MOD itself.
That means building on the procurement reforms I introduced in Government so that we get more bang for our buck and keep technological pace with our adversaries. Instead of programmes taking years, the Integrated Procurement Model I announced in February – and live since April – is about driving pace in acquisition so that we enhance our near term lethality.
For those who scoff that they’ve ‘heard it all before’, when I became aware that the DragonFire laser could give us a highly competitive way to respond to the threat of cheap drones facing our naval ships in the Red Sea, I scrapped a whole load of red tape hoops we would have had to jump through. Instead of lengthy procurement, we are going for the new standard of ‘Minimum Deployable Capability’ from 2027.
We need to use this approach across the full gamut of procurement, as far as possible.
Alongside the lethality of our existing forces, funded by a clear pathway to 2.5%, we must also prioritise our people. But, again, just when retention should be the Government’s top personnel priority, they are introducing a tax on education that means many armed forces families could have to reconsider serving their nation.
With the services comes constant relocation and disruption for the children in military families. For a child to have the best start in life, continuity of relationships with teachers and friends in school is essential.
Many service personnel therefore depend heavily on boarding schools for practical reasons. Whilst some of the fees are partly covered, because the Government recognises serving personnel need the continuity boarding schools provide, many will not be able to afford the hike in prices.
This will be particularly damaging for those experienced personnel who will be most affected by this seismic change. That’s why I’m calling for the children of those who serve in the armed services to be exempted from Education VAT.
Of course, in an ideal world Labour would think again about the entire education tax. But with the majority they have we need to accept the new tax is on its way, whilst appealing for a wholly justified exemption for those who serve our country to keep us safe.
The good news is it’s not too late for Labour to change tack.
The Budget is just a fortnight away and the Government must now recognise the urgent need to back our armed forces with two key measures on October 30th: setting a clear pathway to 2.5% and protecting forces’ families from VAT on school fees.