UK ammunition stocks dangerously low, MPS warn

BRITAIN’S ammunition stocks are at “dangerously low levels” as support for Ukraine continues, the select committee on defence has warned.

Rebuilding the UK’S dwindling stockpile of munitions in the wake of the conflict could take at least a decade, putting national security at risk, the MPS said.

The Commons defence committee said the process for buying weapons was “not fit for purpose” and urged the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to cut the time needed to restore stockpiles.

In a report released today, the committee said that “the UK and its Nato allies have allowed ammunition stockpiles to dwindle to dangerously low levels”. It added that the inability to rebuild stockpiles puts at risk “not just our ability to resupply Ukraine but also to counter any threat to our own security”.

Defence is set to get a funding boost in the upcoming Budget, with Rishi Sunak to confirm the increase at the weekend. Yesterday, Ben Wallace, the Defence Secretary, said he was “pretty confident” the MOD would be supported in the Budget, but that the “real battle” would be the departmental spending negotiations for the rest of the decade, expected to start around 2024.