Minister defends lengthy delays to UK army spending plan

[ad_1] A authorities minister has defended lengthy delays to a army spending plan which might be additionally stalling the UK’s next-generation Tempest fighter jet programme, however refused to say when will probably be full.

The defence funding plan (DIP), initially anticipated final autumn, has confronted repeated postponements amid warnings that the army faces a £28bn funding hole over the subsequent 4 years.

Luke Pollard, the minister for defence readiness and trade, advised the Guardian the plan is “an even bigger job than many individuals outdoors defence realise”.

It would imply “basically altering the form of our armed forces, so pivoting, specifically, in direction of extra autonomy”, he mentioned, whereas additionally stressing the necessity to refill army stockpiles despatched to Ukraine lately. “It's not a easy matter of simply changing tank A with tank B.”

The plan will present how the federal government will fund its strategic defence assessment (SDR), the blueprint for reworking the army amid rising threats from Russia and rising commitments to Nato.

Ministers accepted all of the SDR’s suggestions when it was printed final June. However the head of the army, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, advised MPs final month that defence cuts can be wanted with out extra funding.

Earlier this week, Keir Starmer reportedly convened advisers to attempt to discover a strategy to overcome the funding hole. One choice might be to ease chancellor Rachel Reeves’s fiscal guidelines to spice up defence spending, reported the Monetary Occasions. A authorities spokesperson mentioned the fiscal guidelines “are non-negotiable”.

Pollard mentioned it was “not proper for me to touch upon leaks”, however added: “The defence secretary and myself need it [the plan] out quickly, however we’ve nonetheless acquired extra work to do to finalise it and to get it in the fitting place.”

“That is our second to … put our funds on the fitting path,” he added, blaming the final Conservative authorities for funds overruns and delays to key defence initiatives.

Pollard additionally confirmed that delays to the UK’s next-generation fighter jet programme, a joint venture with Italy and Japan, are tied up with the publication of the plan.

Ministers had been anticipated to signal a trilateral contract for the worldwide fight air programme (GCAP), to develop the fighter generally known as Tempest, by final yr, however it stays unsigned due to the delays to the DIP.

“We’re persevering with to signal defence contracts with suppliers. GCAP is a extremely essential program for us as we glance to what’s subsequent after Storm [Tempest’s predecessor],” Pollard mentioned. “We've acquired plans to spend money on GCAP and that's a part of the consideration throughout the DIP.”

Pollard was talking after asserting £80m of presidency funding to subsidise college locations for topics essential to defence, similar to engineering and pc science, to sort out a expertise scarcity.