The UK’s Defense Secretary, Grant Shapps, urges all NATO countries to increase their defense spending to 2.5% of their GDP, citing the challenges of a “more dangerous world.”
Shapps emphasized this during a speech, indicating that the UK Prime Minister will advocate for this at NATO’s 75th-anniversary summit in Washington DC.
Shapps acknowledged that while the UK leads in defense spending in Europe in absolute terms, countries like Poland, Greece, Estonia, and Hungary allocate a higher percentage of their GDP to defense.
Shapps said on Wednesday, April 24, “We’re now saying we think that should be 2.5%. We think in a more dangerous world that would make sense.”
He added, “I will be arguing that, and I know that the prime minister feels strongly about it when we go to the NATO 75th anniversary summit, which is in Washington DC.”
Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced intentions to raise Britain’s defense budget to 2.5% of GDP while visiting Warsaw on Tuesday, April 23.
This decision comes after enduring months of internal pressure from within his party, including calls from three former Conservative defense secretaries, to boost defense spending to 3% of GDP.
The Prime Minister has shifted his stance, seemingly influenced by the looming election, aiming to garner support from MPs.
Previously, he had committed only to the NATO minimum requirement of 2%, which fell short of the figure Boris Johnson had initially proposed back in June 2022.
Sunak’s Warning, UK Faces Growing Security Threats
In a speech on Tuesday, April 23, alongside the NATO secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, Rishi Sunak warned of the threats to the UK.
“In a world that is the most dangerous it has been since the end of the Cold War, we cannot be complacent. As our adversaries align, we must do more to defend our country, our interests, and our values.”
Rishi Sunak
The Prime Minister affirmed the plan was fully funded, moving from an aspiration to spend 2.5% by an unspecified date to a costed commitment to do so in 2030.
Shapps said the spending announcement did not change plans on when the election would be.
The Minister stressed the announcement had been made now because “economic conditions have started to allow” this increase but he struggled to explain how the boost in spending would be funded.
“We’re simply saying that defense of the realm is the absolute number one priority; it comes before everything else and if we don’t defend the nation, then everything else becomes slightly less of an issue.”
Grant Shapps
Shapps also stated that it was “reasonable” to cut 72,000 civil service jobs.
When it was suggested on Nick Ferrari’s LBC program that this would not fully fund the increase in defense spending, Shapps said, “No, but it will pay for a large chunk.”
“We’re making other changes to the way that for example, we use our research and development budgets … you can imagine getting this past not just the Chancellor but essentially two chancellors because the Prime Minister has said every penny of it has to be properly accounted for.”
Grant Shapps
Labour pledges to conduct a strategic defense review within its first year in office to evaluate the UK’s security threats and determine the necessary resources for addressing them.
The party has committed to a target of 2.5% of GDP for defense spending, pending financial feasibility. Emily Thornberry, the shadow attorney general, emphasized that while the UK is not currently “on a war footing,” it faces significantly greater threats, which have evolved over time.
Ahead of the general election, it’s evident that the Conservatives intend to highlight defense as a key point of contention with Labour.
Grant Shapps expressed disappointment with Labour’s stance, indicating a potential battleground in the upcoming election campaign.
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