Keir Starmer says the UK will raise defence spending by £15bn over four years, funded by cuts to other government investment budgets. The plan would lift annual defence spending to nearly £80bn by 2029, though critics say it falls short of what the armed forces need.
Posts tagged as “the Ministry of Defence”
Britain’s Ministry of Defence is investigating reports that a Russian frigate fired warning shots near a UK-registered yacht in the English Channel. No injuries or damage were reported, and officials are treating the episode as isolated.
British forces seized the tanker Smyrtos in the English Channel during a six-hour operation targeting Russia’s sanctions-evading shadow fleet. The UK says the vessel will be held and monitored off England’s south coast while investigations continue.
U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey resigned after rejecting the government’s military funding plan, saying it would leave the armed forces under-resourced and could make the country less safe. The BBC reported he had pushed for defense spending to reach 3% of GDP by 2030 but was offered a smaller increase.
Three Royal Navy personnel died when a Merlin Mk4 helicopter crashed during a training exercise near Okehampton in Devon. Authorities said an investigation is under way and the victims’ families have requested time before further details are released.