NO increase in defence spending as threats get worse
THE Chancellor came under fire last night for failing to increase defence spending at a time of heightened global instability and security threats.
He was accused of being ‘incredibly shortsighted’ for refusing to earmark extra money. The Budget’s ‘ Red Book’, in fact, suggests that there will be a £ 2.5 billion reduction in 2024-25.
Tables published in the Financial Statement and Budget Report indicated routine spending on the already cash-strapped Armed Forces will shrink by £2.2 billion next year. Meanwhile, spending on major procurement projects is forecast to fall by £0.3 billion next year.
The combined totals for both categories will fall from £54.2 billion in 2023/24 to £51.7billion in 2024/25 – at a time of war in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Official defence sources claimed the Resource Departmental Expenditure Limits (RDEL) and the Capital Departmental Expenditure Limits ( CDEL) figures were misleading. They said the 2024-25 figures did not include extra military support for Ukraine and expenditure on Britain’s nuclear deterrent.
When these are added, they claimed, overall spending will rise by £1.4 billion.
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said: ‘As we push forward to spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence as soon as possible, we’ve secured a real-terms uplift and the largest defence budget in history, increasing spend by £1.4 billion to £55.6 billion.’
But critics argue the day-to-day spending on Britain’s defence capabilities is falling.
Former Army commander Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon told the Mail: ‘This was the one time the Budget should not ignore defence when the threats have never been higher and our conventional capabilities are no deterrent to Vladimir Putin.
‘Some of our allies are looking distinctly wobbly. Nothing else matters if we cannot defend ourselves.
‘No doubt the vodka will be flowing in the Kremlin. It is abundantly clear from the Budget that defence of the realm is not an issue for the Government and probably not the Opposition. This is incredibly shortsighted.’
Former Armed Forces minister Mark Francois said: ‘The Defence Secretary recently warned we are moving from a “post-war to a prewar world” – but nobody seems to have told HM Treasury.’
The RDEL budget covers items such as salaries and other running costs. The CDEL pays for bigticket items such as tanks and warships.
In another blow for the Armed Forces, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) warned that such an increase would break the Government’ s fiscal rules.
The OBR estimated that lifting defence spending to 2.5 per cent would cost £15 billion to 16 billion – a figure far exceeding the fiscal headroom in the Budget when other spending commitments were considered.