Should Britain spend more on the military?

DEFENCE Secretary Gavin Williamson is right to demand more money for the military. For far too long, successive governments have starved the armed forces of money and resources while increasing demand upon them. I was part of the tri-service medical personnel deployed to cover the ambulance strike in 1989 and 1990. Then, the military had the resources to ensure people who needed emergency medical help received it. Today, I doubt it does. The military don’t just fight wars. They are involved in search and rescue, assist the police and security services, step in to empty our bins, guard our prisons, drive our ambulances and put out fires when militants down tools and walk out.

ANGUS LONG, Newcastle upon Tyne. FORMER Chief of the General Staff Lord Dannatt believes we need to increase spending on defence to £7 billion a year. Why didn’t he come out and protest against cuts to the military budget while still in the job? PAUL RUANE, Leeds.

OUTLAY on the military is hardly astronomical. Social welfare, health and education account for the bulk of total Government expenditure, while defence spending is a mere 6 per cent. This is not a question of pretending to be a superpower. It is a matter of necessity. We are a maritime nation and rely on high seas trade routes. This autumn, we will commemorate the 78th anniversary of the Battle of Britain when the vision and courage of a few men snatched victory from the jaws of the defeat we were facing after the cutbacks of the Thirties. Do politicians need reminding that skimping on defence endangers our liberty? DAVID GREEN, Southport, Merseyside.