A “new era” for UK defence is needed, Defence Secretary John Healey has said, as he outlined plans to boost our military capabilities and pledged to make the British Army “ten times more lethal”.
In a statement to the Commons, Healey pledged to bolster the military’s capabilities through software and long-range weapons, and committed to delivering “the best kit and technology into the hands of our frontline forces”.
AI, drones and a £1 billion investment in homeland missile defence are all part of plans to keep the UK safe, he said.
He said the government will accept the 62 recommendations in the strategic defence review (SDR), which says that there is “no scope” to reduce the number of regulars in the Army, RAF or Navy.
Healey told MPs: “The threats we face are now more serious and less predictable than at any time since the end of the Cold War. We face war in Europe, growing Russian aggression, new nuclear risks, and daily cyber attacks at home.
“Our adversaries are working more in alliance with one another, while technology is changing the way war is fought. We are in a new era of threat, which demands a new era for UK defence.”
He added: “We will make the British Army 10 times more lethal by combining future technology of drones, autonomy and AI (artificial intelligence) with the heavy metal of tanks and artillery.”
Announcing the plans earlier on Monday, the prime minister said the UK is moving to “war-fighting readiness”.
Speaking in Glasgow, Sir Keir Starmer said he’ll ensure the armed forces are “more integrated, more ready, more lethal than ever.”
“When we are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, the most effective way to deter them is to be ready,” he told workers at BAE Systems.
He also said he was “100% confident” the plans in the new strategic defence review – including extra attack submarines, £15 billion on nuclear warheads and thousands of new long-range weapons – could be delivered on current funding plans.
The Labour government launched the strategic defence review shortly after it won the election last year, in response to increasing global instability.
“The threat we now face is more serious, more immediate, and more unpredictable than at any time since the Cold War,” Starmer said.
The “transformation” signalled by the SDR marks the “most profound change for about 150 years in how you think about armies, navies and air force,” one of the authors of the review, General Sir Richard Barrons, said on Monday.
The military have been told that “an immediate priority” should be a “shift towards greater use of autonomy and artificial intelligence”, while the Army should be prepared to operate with “a 20-40-40” mix between crewed systems, “reusable” tech such as drones, and “consumables” such as rockets, shells and missiles.
Healey has also pledged to “protect the UK homeland” with “up to £1 billion new funding invested in homeland air and missile defence”.
He told the Commons that he wants to “increase the British Army to at least 76,000 full-time soldiers in the next Parliament”.
The report also advocates an expansion in the cadet forces by 30% by 2030, with an overall of 250,000 signed up in the longer term.
The review comes as the UK and allies are facing changing threats across the globe, amid Russia’s continuing war in Ukraine.
The authors of the review warned that “the international chessboard has been tipped over” and the “certainties of the international order we have accepted for so long are now being questioned”.
US President Donald Trump has been pushing for European countries to dramatically increase their defence spending rather than relying on Washington to subsidise the cost of their security.
He has called for a 5% spending target, while Nato general secretary Mark Rutte has reportedly asked for members to spend 3.5% on their militaries by 2032 with a further 1.5% on defence-related projects.
The government will increase defence spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product from April 2027 with an ambition – but no firm commitment – to increase it to 3% during the next parliament.
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