John Healey: ‘Here’s why Labour is the real party of defence’

In this era of increasing threats to our security, prosperity, and values, we need a new era of UK defence to deal with a more dangerous world.

Over the next decade, we face an active alliance of aggression from autocrats who have contempt for international law and freely squander the lives of their own people.

Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine is now into its third brutal year. Ukrainians are fighting with huge courage, civilians and military alike. They’ve regained half the territory taken by Putin but Russia shows resurgent strength putting Ukraine’s long frontline under intense fire.

I’m proud the UK is united for Ukraine. We welcome and we fully back the increased commitment of UK military aid to Ukraine as we have done at each stage.

The UK is rightly responding to Ukrainian needs and as Keir Starmer said to President Zelensky in Kyiv, there may be a change in government to Labour this year, but there will be no change in Britain’s resolve to stand with Ukraine, confront Russian aggression and pursue Putin for his war crimes.

The first duty of government is keeping the nation safe

We do this because the first duty of any Government is to keep the nation safe and protect our citizens, and the defence of the UK starts in Ukraine. If Putin wins he won’t stop with Ukraine. Labour will always do what is needed and spend what is needed on defence.

When Labour was last in Government in 2010, Britain was spending 2.5% of GDP on defence, the British Army had over 100,000 full-time troops and satisfaction with service life was 60%.

We are a party with deep roots in defending this country.

Throughout the last century, it’s been working men and women who’ve served on the frontline. Fighting and sometimes dying for our country. It was Labour that established NATO and the British nuclear deterrent – commitments that are unshakeable for Keir Starmer as Labour leader.

People judge governments on what they do, not what they say.

The army’s the smallest since Napoleon

The Defence Secretary is right that what we do in UK defence sends signals to the world. So, what signal does it send to Britain’s adversaries when UK Armed Forces have been “hollowed out and underfunded” since 2010, as his predecessor Ben Wallace admitted in the House of Commons last year?

When the British Army is now the smallest size since Napoleon and the day-to-day defence budget is still being cut in real terms this year?

When Forces recruitment targets have been missed every year, satisfaction with service life has hit record lows and military families live in damp-ridden housing and use food banks to get by?

The Tory record on defence is 14 years of failure. Our UK Armed Forces are respected worldwide for their total professionalism. They can’t afford another five years of the Conservatives.

The Tory 2.5% pledge takes them back to where Labour was in 2010

When the Prime Minister announced last month that the Conservatives will raise defence spending to 2.5% of GDP in 2030 – the same level as with Labour in 2010?

This was the same promise Boris Johnson made two years ago but they haven’t delivered in any of the five Budgets and Autumn Statements since. None hit 2.5%; none reversed the real cuts in resource spending; none matched our Labour record.

Everyone recognises that defence spending must rise to deal with increasing threats. We share the same ambition as the Government. We are totally committed to 2.5% and we want a plan that is fully-funded in Government baseline budgets – our Forces deserve nothing less.

Labour’s plan for defence will:

• reinforce homeland protections with a new strategic review;
• fulfil NATO obligations in full with a NATO test on our major programmes;
• renew the nation’s contract with those who serve with an independent forces commissioner;
• make allies our strategic strength with new German, French and EU defence agreements;
• direct British defence investment first to British jobs with deep defence procurement reform.

Labour is the real party of defence. With Labour, Britain will be better defended.

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