We couldn’t confront Putin if Corbyn were PM
The Tories are investing in defence and security. But Labour’s leader wants Nato to ‘go home and go away’
The terrorist attack at London Bridge on Friday provided a harrowing reminder of the security threats we face, and the challenge of defending the freedoms we prize. The horrific attack was met with breathtaking courage from members of the public who tackled the perpetrator, and the brave professionalism of police and medics who stopped the rampage and tended to the victims. They are all in our thoughts.
The Prime Minister chaired a Cobra meeting on Friday to lead the response, and the Government will take every measure to keep our citizens safe – as difficult as it is to intercept every “lone wolf ” attack, which have become increasingly common.
Last year, the counter-terrorism policing budget was boosted by £160 million. We are recruiting 20,000 more officers for neighbourhood policing and have given the police and intelligence agencies the powers necessary to do their job. Yesterday, the Prime Minister confirmed that counterterror policing funding would be boosted even further next year with an additional £70 million, taking total funding to £900 million by 2021.
If re-elected, we will legislate to remove safe spaces for terrorists to hide online and we will update the Human Rights Act, so we can better defend our security. We have already strengthened sentences for terrorist offences. We will review them again for the most serious crimes, and conduct a root-and-branch review of the Parole Board with public safety our overriding priority. Equally, as the London Bridge attack demonstrates, we must always be prepared to back our officers when they use lethal force to save lives. That should not be called into question.
Leaving the EU will enable us to bar anyone from coming here who might pose a threat, as we already do with those arriving from outside Europe, and remove those who commit crimes here more easily. But our Brexit deal also enables us to continue the security cooperation which both sides rely on – from law enforcement to countering terrorist financing.
Of course, Nato remains the cornerstone of our European security. This week the PM will host the Nato leaders’ meeting in London. We lead by example. Since 2010, the UK has met the Nato target of investing 2 per cent of GDP in defence. The UK remains the largest Nato defence spender in Europe. Our Armed Forces work every day with Nato allies across the world – from Afghanistan and Iraq to the Enhanced Forward Presence in Estonia and Poland and air policing in Iceland and the Baltics.
Nato needs to adapt to tackle new threats like cyber-attacks, as well as maintain its focus on defeating Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil). But that means all of its members paying their way, reinforcing Nato’s operational capabilities, and forging an even stronger transatlantic unity of purpose.
Ultimately, keeping terror off our streets and deepening our security cooperation with our Nato partners are two sides of the same coin. That is why, next year, we will launch the deepest review of Britain’s security, defence and foreign policy since the end of the Cold War. It will address everything from strengthening our strategic alliances to the technological innovation we need to sharpen our operational cutting edge.
Imagine just for a moment that it was Jeremy Corbyn hosting those Nato leaders. What credibility would we have in standing up to bellicose Russian President Vladimir Putin if the UK were led by Mr Corbyn, who sided with him when Salisbury was subject to a nerve agent attack in 2018? What chance would the UK have as we seek to unite Nato allies while led by someone who called for Nato to “shut up shop, give up, go home and go away”? How would our security services be able to keep us safe when Labour’s manifesto suggests they plan to dilute their powers?
And what moral authority would we have in tackling terrorism, led by a man who counts Hamas and Hizbollah as “friends” and consistently opposed action to defeat Isil?
When it comes to government’s first duty to protect the security of its people, the choice on December 12 is clear. Under Jeremy Corbyn, we would be weaker and more vulnerable at home, and dismissed abroad as an irrelevance by the friends and partners who count on Britain’s leadership. Under Boris Johnson and the Conservatives, we will be equipped to tackle the terrorist threat at home, and lead by example with our allies to keep Britain safe.