John Healey resigns as defence secretary in disagreement with Starmer over defence spending – UK politics live

Here is one of the key extracts from the letter.

double quotation mark This new era for defence required further investment through the defence investment plan. The excellent. extensive cross-government work that completed in January – overseen by you, me and the chancellor – confirmed the scale of the challenge and the rising demands on defence.

Since then, you have been unable,. the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats.

This is a double hatchet job. John Healey is criticising Rachel Reeves for being too stubborn to increase defence spending by the amount he wants,. Keir Starmer for being too weak to over-rule her.

Al Carns, the former Royal Marine who only became an MP in 2024, who was immediately appointed a defence minister. who has even hinted that he would like to stand for the Labour leadership soon, has issued a statement on social media praising his former boss. Here is an extract.

double quotation mark John Healey has given this country serious service in a serious time.

He took on the Ministry of Defence at a moment when the world was getting more dangerous, not less,. he carried that weight with the discipline and decency that the job demands.

I worked alongside him closely. I saw the hours, the care, and the seriousness he brought to every brief, including the hardest ones. There are issues facing this Department that do not lend themselves to easy answers. The work on funding, on veterans, on Legacy, on the welfare of those who serve.

As Pippa says (see 2.14pm ), Keir Starmer will need appoint a new defence secretary soon. (There are some cabinet jobs you can leave empty for a bit,. the defence post is not one of them.) Carns himself could be a candidate to replace him. (Luke Pollard, the well-regarded minister of state at the Ministry of Defence, is senior to Carns in the MoD pecking order, but Carns had a stellar career in the armed forces. his appointment would be well received.) But Carns has told Times Radio today that the defence investment plan is “not fit for purpose”, implying he would not take the job unless Rachel Reeves were to agree to a significant rethink.

Here is a snap analysis of John Healey’s resignation by Pippa Crerar, the Guardian’s political editor.

double quotation mark John Healey’s departure puts Keir Starmer in an even more difficult position than he was already.

The former defence sec’s charge that he is putting UK’s security at risk is a devastating one -. will worry Labour MPs & cut through with voters. The fact Tories underfunded defence for years won’t wash.

It further weakens Starmer in that this was supposed to be his strong point -. has repeatedly said that keeping nation safe is his number one priority.

Cabinet relations have been badly damaged by the protracted row over plan - with the standoff leading to some of worst infighting since Labour took power over cuts to other department’s capital budgets.

International allies will notice Healey’s resignation - and reasons why. PM is meeting G7 allies in France next week & is in Ankara for a Nato summit in early July. Awkward timing.

Starmer may also struggle to appoint a credible new defence secretary - for all the ambitious MPs out there - who will be prepared to make case for this plan now?

It also impacts Reeves, who blocked extra spending, and leaves her open to charge of leaving nation unsafe. She faces impossible choices over spending - but many will feel defence should have been priority.

It all makes Starmer’s departure - already looking likely - feel inevitable. While his allies say he’ll fight any challenge from Andy Burnham if he wins Makerfield - he’s just lost one of his most senior cabinet ministers. When the herd moves, and all that.

Higher defence spending is normally a cause championed by people on the right in politics. But one of the leading voices calling for the publication of an ambitious defence investment plan (DIP) has been Unite. the union led by the leftwing Sharon Graham. Unite has a lot of members working in the defence sector,. Unite has been campaigning for a settlement that will secure jobs.

Commenting on Healey’s resignation, Graham said:

double quotation mark What is going on in regard to yet another delay on the DIP is fast becoming a national disgrace. Make no mistake jobs and skills are at risk.

John Healey’s resignation letter has laid bare the utter chaos at the heart of government on this issue. Defending the UK and investing in our defence industry simply can’t be done on the cheap. British defence needs investment. Failure to protect UK defence jobs would be a national betrayal.

The SNP says John Healey’s resignation is “utterly damning” for Keir Stamer. In a statement, Dave Doogan, the SNP leader at Westminster, said:

double quotation mark Keir Starmer is putting Scotland’s safety at risk by failing to deliver the vital defence investment. is needed in the face of growing international threats.

The resignation of the UK defence secretary, at a time of global crisis, is utterly damning for the prime minister -. it will be the final nail in his sorry time in office. Yet again, the Labour government is in chaos -. it is putting Scotland and the UK’s defence in jeopardy at the worst possible time.

Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, has said that the resignation of John Healey shows Keir Starmer’s premiership “is falling apart”.

Speaking to reporters, she said:

double quotation mark His health secretary resigned two weeks ago. His defence secretary has resigned at a critical time when we are facing global threats,. he is doing so because the prime minister is trying to please his backbenchers by putting money into welfare instead of defence.

We need to start funding defence. We need to get to 3% of GDP by the end of this parliament …

Keir Starmer has no plan whatsoever. I don’t see how he can stay in this job. He can’t run the country. He is paralysed because his backbenchers only want to spend money on welfare.

(All oppositions need a simple attack line to use against the government. at the moment Badencoch is running hard with the line that Labour won’t spend money on X, or cut taxes for Y, because its MPs just want to spend more money on benefits. This makes for compelling rhetoric,. because benefit spending is rising fast in some areas it has enough truth in it to make it arguable. But, as an overall explanation for what is happening with spending, it is almost wholly wrong. See here for more on this, or here.)

John Healey is getting a lot of praise from MPs on social media – at least, from Tory MPs.

Here are some examples.

From James Cleverly, the former foreign secretary

double quotation mark I have always respected John Healey.

He clearly takes defence of the realm. defence of our interests more seriously than either Keir Starmer or Rachel Reeves.

From Tom Tugendhat, the former security minister

double quotation mark The first duty of government is defence of the Realm. @JohnHealey_MP ’s principled resignation states clearly this administration has failed.

I’ve criticised every party for the state we’re in. the truth is now clear: the complacent confidence in peace is over. We must rearm.

From Ben Obese-Jecty, a former soldier

double quotation mark This is a hugely principled stance from John Healey.

The chaos around the Defence Investment Plan. no agreement on how we defend the nation has caused the Secretary of State to resign. Keir Starmer’s position as Prime Minister must now be untenable

From Andrew Bowie, the shadow Scottish secretary

double quotation mark John Healey is an honourable man, well respected. held in high regard across the House and in the Defence community.

He has done the only thing possible given the state of the Defence Investment Plan.

Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, has said that John Healey’s resignation should be a wake-up call for the government. He said:

double quotation mark Healey’s resignation is a wake-up call for Starmer and Burnham.

Stop repeating the mistakes of the Conservatives and get serious about funding our armed forces properly.

We cannot afford years more political chaos while our national security is put at risk.

And these are from Emily Maitlis, one of the hosts of the News Agents podcast, on Healey’s resignation.

double quotation mark BREAKING: John Healey I have been told that John Healey only got the full offer on Monday afternoon - No 10 tried to rush. publish the Defence investment Plan on Thursday. Healey was clear that rushing through the plan was too risky for defence. personnel, as the plan needed to be properly finalised and was too important. Chiefs said that £13.5B - which was only £10b real cash, the rest being treasury trickery - would not end hollowing out. would delay key transformation

double quotation mark I understand. John Healey had agreed the Strategic Defence Review on the basis it MIGHT NEED TO BE ACCELERATED if things changed. NATO as we know has said we have to be ready for conflict by 2030 - meawhile Russian aggression is at record highs. wars on two continents etc. The PM recognised this in Munich. But the deal the PM offered didnt even put a date on 3%.

This is from Deborah Haynes, defence and security editor at Sky News, on John Healey’s resignation.

double quotation mark BREAKING: The Treasury only offered the Ministry of Defence an extra £10bn in real cash for its investment plan over four years - the actual settlement was an additional £13.5bn. £3.5bn of that was regarded by military chiefs as treasury trickery. John Healey told the Prime Minister the promised funding was not enough to keep the UK safe.

Here is a summary of all the points in John Healey’ s resignation letter.

Healey said the version of the long-awaited defence investment plan (DIP). he saw on Monday this week would see defence spending rise to just 2.68% of GDP by 2030. (See 12.44pm.)

He criticised Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, for being unwilling to give defence more,. Keir Starmer for being unwilling to over-rule her. (See 12.30pm.)

He said he was resigning because he did not think defence was getting enough and. under these plans, he would have to take decisions that could make Britain “less safe”. He said:

double quotation mark You know what defence needs. You made the argument for this powerfully in your speech at the Munich Security Conference back in February. Without a DIP that meets the moment in this way, I am being forced to make decisions that would reduce the readiness of our forces. increase the risk to personnel on operations, and could make the country less safe.

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.

He reminded Starmer that, in a speech last week, Starmer said: “It is our intelligence assessment,. the assessment of other countries in Nato, that there could be an attack by Russia on Nato as soon as 2030.”

Healey said he was resigning “with great regret and reluctance”.

He said he was proud of some of his achievements as defence secretary.

double quotation mark I am proud of what we have done in less than two years as a Labour government. We’ve stepped up to lead internationally for Ukraine with the coalition of the willing. Ukraine Defence Contact Group, established Britain as a leading voice for Europe in NATO, raised defence investment to 2.5% of GDP three years earlier than anyone expected, launched the deepest defence reforms in 50 years, won the biggest UK defence export deals for decades, published a first-of-its-kind Strategic Defence Review, gave our Armed Forces the biggest pay rise in nearly 20 years, boosted military morale, fixed over 1,200 of the worst forces family homes, reset relations with European allies and signed major defence agreements with Germany, Norway and France.

You have led this as PM, earning wide respect at home and abroad. Like me, I know you are exceptionally proud of our Forces and all of those who work in UK defence.

He said that Starmer is facing “exceptional challenges”. He ended his letter saying:

double quotation mark I wish you all continuing strength in the exceptional challenges you face as prime minister. As always, our Labour government will continue to have my fullest support.

This was the only reference in the letter to the leadership challenge. Starmer if facing after next week’s Makerfield byelection. Healey’s resignation is likely to be seen as evidence that Starmer’s authority as PM is weakening. But there is no evidence that Healey would get a better defence settlement under Andy Burnham, or any other of the potential replacement leaders,. Healey’s resignation does not particularly help any of Starmer’s rivals.

Andy Burnham’s campaign has released a statement saying that when he spoke about “some recompense” for the Waspi women (see 11.50am ). he was not talking about financial compensation. As the Times reports, a Burnham spokesperson issued a statement this morning saying:

double quotation mark Andy has always recognised the unfair way in which state pension equalisation was introduced.

As mayor of Greater Manchester. he supported Waspi women in the city-region with early access to concessionary travel, providing some recompense to them within affordability limits.

He accepts the final decision has been made in relation to financial compensation. has indicated an openness to considering similar schemes on the Greater Manchester model.

Here is the key passage in the letter. In it. John Healey says the version of the long-awaited defence investment plan that he saw on Monday this week would see defence spending rise to just 2.68% of GDP by 2030.

double quotation mark We came into government. recognising Britain faced a new era of threat which demanded a new era for defence. The SDR [strategic defence review] we jointly commissioned set the 10-year vision to transform our armed forces, strengthen alliances, invest in the technology that is changing warfare. back British industry to make defence an engine for growth.

This new era for defence required further investment through the defence investment plan. The excellent. extensive cross-government work that completed in January – overseen by you, me and the chancellor – confirmed the scale of the challenge and the rising demands on defence.

Since then, you have been unable,. the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats.

Since then. the demands on defence have increased still further, as have the UK commitments you have rightly made to allies. Conflict in the Middle East, with the UK now leading the multinational Strait of Hormuz military mission; High North security, with the UK now leading Nato’s Arctic Sentry mission; increased Russian activity towards the UK. Nato nations and increased attacks in Ukraine, with the Paris agreement confirming a British deployment to Ukraine after a ceasefire.

We have worked to secure a defence investment plan that does two things. First, deal with the increasing operational demands on defence now. step up the SDR actions to meet the increasing threat. Second. set a clear path to meet the new Nato commitment you agreed to spend 3.5% of GDP in 2035 through the next spending review.

As we have regularly discussed. I am certain that a headmark date for 3% of GDP on defence in 2030 is what Britain must set. This commitment would have strong cross-party support. Other European allies are stepping up in this way.

I know how hard you have worked to get to this point. And in funding the DIP, I fully recognise the strain this places on colleagues in other departments, both now as you have required spending switched into defence. in the future. I am very grateful to those colleagues who have supported this,. I appreciate how difficult their choices will have been.

As I’ve outlined to you, there are credible ways of meeting the mid-term funding challenges, working multi-nationally. as other European nations are doing, to allow us to protect our ability to deliver the missions of our Labour government.

However, your DIP financial settlement – which I was first given in full on Monday afternoon this week – falls well short of what is required for defence. the country at this dangerous time. The extra support is backloaded when the pressure of operations. imperative to speed up readiness to fight is in the first two years and it rises to just 2.68% of GDP in 2030, when we will reach 2.6% next year with the investment we are already making.

The government still has not published the final DIP. At the weekend there were reports it might come today, and then there were reports that it might come tomorrow. In the Commons yesterday Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker, said that an announcement like that on a day when the Commons was not sitting would be “an utter disgrace. an utter kick in the face” to MPs. Ministers subsequently made it clear the DIP would not be published tomorrow.

Healey says the version of the defence investment plan (DIP) he was shown on Monday “falls well short” of what is required. He says:

double quotation mark However, your DIP financial settlement – which I was first given in full on Monday afternoon this week – falls well short of what is required for defence. the country at this dangerous time.

The extra support is backloaded when the pressure of operations. imperative to speed up readiness to fight is in the first two years and it rises to just 2.68% of GDP in 2030, when we will reach 2.6% next year with the investment we are already making.

Here is one of the key extracts from the letter.

double quotation mark This new era for defence required further investment through the defence investment plan. The excellent. extensive cross-government work that completed in January – overseen by you, me and the chancellor – confirmed the scale of the challenge and the rising demands on defence.

Since then, you have been unable,. the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats.

This is a double hatchet job. John Healey is criticising Rachel Reeves for being too stubborn to increase defence spending by the amount he wants,. Keir Starmer for being too weak to over-rule her.

Here is John Healey ’s resignation letter.

Reuters has snapped this.

double quotation mark HEALEY TO STARMER: YOU HAVE BEEN UNABLE. AND THE TREASURY HAS BEEN UNWILLING, TO COMMIT THE RESOURCES THAT THE NATION NEEDS TO DEFEND THE COUNTRY AT THIS TIME OF RISING THREATS

The UK. Irish governments and the Northern Ireland executive have discussed protecting the common travel area and stronger enforcement to “prevent abuse”, the Irish government has confirmed.

Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn, Irish justice minister Jim O’Callaghan. Stormont’s justice minister Naomi Long spoke by phone on Wednesday.

Today in a statement the Irish government’s Department of Justice said:

double quotation mark The invisible border on the island of Ireland is among the most tangible gains of the peace process. is essential to the continuing normalisation of relationships.

Minister O’Callaghan discussed the importance of cross border cooperation in protecting the common travel area [CTA] for both Ireland. the UK yesterday by phone with the Northern Ireland minister for Justice, Naomi Long and the secretary of state for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn.

They discussed stronger co-operation and enforcement to prevent abuse of the common travel area.

Minister O’Callaghan emphasised that significant Border Management Unit doorstop operations now take place at Dublin airport. The number of people landing without documentation has reduced significantly since 2023.

Northern Ireland minister for justice Naomi Long. secretary of state for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn, agreed to work with Minister O’Callaghan to prevent abuse of the CTA.

The rioting in Belfast has been triggered by a brutal knife attack that happened on Monday night. The suspect is a Sudanese national who arrived in Belfast from Dublin. taking advantage of the CTA to cross the border without being stopped. He applied for asylum and was granted leave to remain three years ago. The stabbing has prompted claims. the CTA leaves a “loophole” in border controls that is being exploited by asylum seekers.