Truth bomb: Defence secretary John Healey resigns over funding battles
John Healey has resigned as defence secretary after months of tension with Sir Keir Starmer over funding for an uplift in spending on the armed forces.
In a letter to the Prime Minister, Healey said the government’s draft for the Defence Investment Plan (DIP) “falls well short of what is required for defence and the country at this dangerous time”.
“After explaining to you that I would not be able to accept a DIP settlement that does not give our forces the resources they need, I am now left with no other option than to submit my resignation as your defence secretary,” Healey wrote.
He added that the Treasury had also been “unwilling to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats”.
Healey also claimed there were “credible” ways of boosting defence spending and that the letter was one “I never expected to write” and “do so now with great regret and reluctance”.
The MP for Rawmarsh and Conisbrough had widely been seen as an ally of Starmer despite leadership campaigns being launched by former health secretary Wes Streeting and by-election candidate Andy Burnham.
The resignation will be damaging for Starmer as diplomacy and defence was seen as one of the Prime Minister’s strengths in government.
Starmer, Healey and Chancellor Rachel Reeves were widely expected to unveil the DIP, the 10-year blueprint that would act on recommendations made in the strategic defence review last year.
The Prime Minister had already committed to increasing defence spending to 2.6 per cent of GDP from next year, while adding further commitments to reach three per cent after 2030 and 3.5 per cent by 2035 under a Nato agreement.
Military chiefs had also warned that there was a £28bn funding shortfall in the next four years due to the rising costs of equipment and other areas of the armed forces.
It was previously reported that Starmer was only prepared to fund a £13bn uplift in defence spending to cover some of the added costs, infuriating military chiefs and defence advisers. The letter indicated that an uplift of around just £10bn was offered.
There were also disagreements over when the government would hit its three per cent defence spending target, according to reports. Healey said in his letter that current plans suggested defence spending would come to just under 2.7 per cent of GDP by 2030, adding that he would “not accept” a DIP deal that did not boost defence spending to three per cent by 2030.
Healey delivers blow to Starmer on defence
Morning Wire analysis has shown that, if the government wished to spend 3.5 per cent of GDP on defence immediately without borrowing, it would represent a 4p hike on income tax or disability benefits being cut altogether.
Some financial analysts have urged the Treasury to create a bond that features an inheritance tax break to fund defence spending, as reported by the Telegraph. Starmer’s business adviser Varun Chandra reportedly pushed for the Treasury to consider the idea but it was shut down by officials.
Reeves said earlier that this week that money for defence “has to come from somewhere, and borrowing cannot always be the answer”.
Starmer will now be tasked with finding a replacement for Healey in a fractured Labour Party where nearly 100 MPs have called for the Prime Minister to resign.