Minister urged to reveal timeline for increase in defence spending
Minister urged to reveal timeline for increase in defence spending
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A defence minister has declined to outline the timetable for when the Government will meet its “cast-iron commitment” to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP. Luke Pollard said MPs will have to wait until the spring for a spending plan, amid reports the target will not be met by 2030, despite pressure from Donald Trump’s administration in the White House.
A senior Government source told The Times that meeting the target in five years would mean “deeper cuts in the run-up to the election” and “feels like a non-starter”. Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge urged Mr Pollard to “disown such talk”, and Liberal Democrat defence spokeswoman Helen Maguire warned that “promises without a clear path are hollow”.
Mr Pollard said: “This Government has a cast-iron commitment to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence and this Government is already delivering for defence by increasing defence spending. “At our first budget, we announced an extra £3 billion on spending on defence in the next financial year.”.
Mr Cartlidge highlighted the threats from Russia to the UK as a reason to “urgently” increase defence spending. The Conservative frontbencher, who had tabled an urgent question about the Government’s fiscal policy on defence, told the Commons: “Despite all of the evidence before our eyes of the growing threat, we learned this weekend from multiple sources that spending 2.5% will be delayed beyond 2030. Can the minister first disown such talk, but specifically confirm we will hit 2.5% this Parliament?”.
