Starmer’s premiership ‘falling apart’, opponents claim, after Healey resigns over defence funding – UK politics live

Badenoch claims Healey's resignation shows Starmer's premiership 'falling apart'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 markHis health secretary resigned two weeks ago. His defence secretary has resigned at a critical time when we are facing global threats, and 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 and 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, and 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.)ShareKey events12m agoLabour's defence policy 'mired in unreality' - thinktanks respond to Healey's resignation28m agoItaly's defence minister tells Healey he agrees with 'almost everything' he has said45m agoWes Streeting praises Healey, and says 'every word' in his call for higher defence spending 'needs to be heeded'2h agoTwo people arrested and fined after anti-migrant unrest in Greenock, Police Scotland says2h agoDefence minister Al Carns says defence investment plan 'not fit for purpose', as he praises Healey's 'serious service'2h agoPippa Crerar on what Healey's resignation means for Starmer3h agoUnite's leader Sharon Graham says Healey's resignation shows work on defence investment plan has been 'utter chaos'3h agoHealey's resignation 'utterly damning' for Starmer, says SNP3h agoBadenoch claims Healey's resignation shows Starmer's premiership 'falling apart'3h agoHealey says he would have to take decisions that could make UK 'less safe' if he accepted PM's defence plans4h agoHealey says defence spending only set to rise to 2.68% of GDP by 2030 under proposed defence investment plan4h agoHealey says spending increase in defence investment plan 'falls well short of what is required'4h agoHealey criticises Reeves for being 'unwilling' to fund defence by enough, and Starmer for being too weak to over-rule her4h agoJohn Healey has resigned as defence secretary over Treasury refusing to give defence investment he says it needs4h agoIrish and UK governments, and NI's executive, agree to work together to 'prevent abuse' of common travel area5h agoBurnham says Waspi women should get 'some recompense' - but later clarifies he's not proposing financial compensation6h agoScottish councils face £500m shortfall in operating costs, spending watchdog says6h agoBenn says 1,000 people removed from Northern Ireland over past year by immigration enforcement, and more raids planned6h agoBadenoch apologises for Belfast knife attacker being granted asylum under 2023 Tory government7h agoGavin Robinson MP, DUP leader, said borders into the UK need “protecting” more7h agoHilary Benn accuses people of inciting disorder in Belfast after second night of unrestAnd here is a thinktank with a different take on the defence investment plan. This is from Khem Rogaly, co-director of the Transition Security Project, a research unit hosted by Common Wealth. He says: double quotation markThe debate over increasing military spending has been unserious and damaging to our security. [John] Healey’s Ministry of Defence has constantly leaked its unpublished internal assessment that it faces a shortfall, despite a budget that has increased by nearly a third over the past decade and that is larger now in real terms than it was in 1980. Too little attention has been paid to the Ministry of Defence’s litany of failed and delayed programmes, with more spending expected for the Ajax tank while cuts are demanded from departments essential to national resilience like net zero. Even less attention is paid to the fact that the Ministry of Defence retains a global strategy, with bases across the world and forces designed for intervention overseas. Instead of lobbying for yet larger spending increases and arbitrary targets set by percentage of GDP, the Ministry of Defence should be asked to focus its resources on national defence. ShareLabour's defence policy 'mired in unreality' - thinktanks respond to Healey's resignationHere are comments on the significance of John Healey’s resignation from two thinktanks specialising in defence and foreign policy.This is from Olivia O’Sullivan, director of the UK in the World programme at Chatham House. double quotation markPolitically, this significantly undermines [Keir] Starmer. Healey has been an ally and a loyal minister to date. Starmer has also had a relatively assured track record on defence and foreign affairs, compared with other issues, and failing to secure agreement over the UK’s future plans for defence spending at a time of spiralling security risks in Europe undermines that potential legacy. In policy terms, this is a symptom of a longer-term failure to reckon with the costs of rising defence commitments. The government put a target of 2.5% of GDP on the table in its first year – and is committed to hitting 3.5% of GDP within the next decade – and neither imposed tax rises, nor agreed cuts to public spending to pay for it; other than cuts to the aid budget, which were never going to yield enough to fill the gap, and have significant consequences of their own for the UK’s international policy. Waiting this long to have the argument that should have been had when the targets were set, or in immediate response to 2025’s strategic defence review, suggests the government conversation on defence is still mired in unreality. And this is from Prof Kevin Rowlands, journal editor at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). double quotation markMilitary capability development depends on long lead times, predictable budgets, and confidence that national security priorities will survive ministerial change. Without that confidence procurement decisions get deferred, industry pauses, and programmes slip. It affects manufacturing, supply chains, training and skills development, and even international alliances. The delay to the DIP [defence investment plan] had become an unfunny running joke, but the decision of the defence secretary to resign is not the least bit amusing. Healey knows the threats we face, he knows the capabilities and shortfalls the armed forces have, and if he believes that the financial settlement is not enough to keep the country safe – to the extent that he cannot honourably stay in post – then we are in trouble. ShareItaly's defence minister tells Healey he agrees with 'almost everything' he has saidGuido Crosetto, the Italian defence minister, has posted a message on social media expressing solidarity with John Healey. Crosetto says, in effect, that he agrees with what Healey has said, that he has considered resigning for the same reasons himself, but that for the moment he has decided to carry on fighting that battle within government.Here is an excerpt. double quotation markI find myself in agreement with almost everything you have written, and the thoughts you have made public today have often been my own as well. I have chosen to wait for less difficult times, hoping for a positive evolution of the current circumstances. The Italian government has just announced that it has got its defence and security spending up to 2.8% of GDP.ShareWes Streeting praises Healey, and says 'every word' in his call for higher defence spending 'needs to be heeded'Wes Streeting, the former health secretary, has posted this on social media about John Healey’s resignation letter. double quotation markJohn was an excellent Defence Secretary. Every word of warning here needs to be heeded. Streeting is already running an informal campaign for the Labour leadership (he has said that a proper contest should wait until Andy Burnham is back in parliament) and this sounds like he would give the Ministry of Defence much or all of what Healey is asking for if he were to become leader.Burnham has not said much about defence policy in recent weeks. But, as Daniel Green says in a good LabourList guide to Burnham’s policy agenda, Burnham has backed higher defence spending in the past.Any future PM wanting to boost spending in the defence investment plan would soon find out why Rachel Reeves did not give Healey what he wanted; something would have to give elsewhere.(Burnham has suggested that extra borrowing, outside the fiscal rules, might be a way round that. Some argue that this would spook the bond markets, but Gordon Brown has also argued for a version of this idea.)ShareAnd Reform UK has issued this statement about John Healey’s resignation. It’s from Richard Tice, the party’s deputy leader. double quotation markJohn Healey has exposed the prime minister’s true priorities, with the devastating admission that neither he nor the Treasury is willing to commit the resources needed to properly defend our country. In effect, he has acknowledged that Keir Starmer is leaving the British people less safe. Much of the hot air and blather we’ve heard over the past year following the strategic defence review has been for nothing. Healey, who is widely respected, has effectively revealed a government that is prioritising Benefit Street over the security of the British public. This is quite similar to the Conservatives’ argument. (See 1.48pm.)ShareHere is some Labour reaction to the resignation of John Healey.This is from Tan Dhesi, the chair of the Commons defence committee. double quotation markJohn Healey has been a serious, committed and respected defence secretary, who has understood the scale of the threats facing the UK and the urgent need to strengthen our armed forces. That a defence secretary of his integrity and commitment has felt compelled to resign in response to the inadequacy of the proposed defence settlement is a grave moment. The government must take that warning with the utmost seriousness. The defence committee has been clear that investment in defence must be accelerated to reach 3% of GDP by the end of this parliament, and that the defence investment plan cannot be delayed further or used to disguise hard choices. And this is from Dan Carden, who heads the Blue Labour group of Labour MPs. double quotation markJohn Healey has resigned on a point of principle, and I have huge respect for him Defence spending must rise significantly, but you do not keep Britain safe with a bigger cheque alone. Britain has for decades mistaken wealth for strength, and spending for capability, and now we are neither safe nor sovereign. A country with a shrinking industrial base that cannot power its own factories or make its own weapons is not strong, whatever it spends. Strength is not only bought. It is built. We must spend more and build more. This government and my party have to commit to both, urgently. ShareZack Polanski, the Green party leader, says John Healey’s resignation shows the government is in chaos. In a statement, he says: double quotation markThis is a government in chaos, unable to govern, with no leadership, under a caretaker prime minister who’s expected to be replaced within weeks … Britain deserves better. We need a clear plan to stand on our own two feet, to show global leadership, and to make this country resilient in a changing world. Starmer does not have that plan. ShareTwo people arrested and fined after anti-migrant unrest in Greenock, Police Scotland saysSeverin CarrellSeverin Carrell is the Guardian’s Scotland editor.Police in Greenock, the coastal town on the Firth of Clyde, arrested and fined two people after anti-immigrant disturbances on Wednesday night.Police Scotland said three officers suffered minor injuries after being hit by “items thrown at them” and two police vehicles damaged during disturbances on Main Street, Greenock.The two arrested were given fixed penalty notices for anti-social behaviour. In similar violence in Glasgow on Tuesday night, police made three arrests, and members of the public and officers were also injured.Chief Supt Rhona Fraser said: double quotation markOur priority is public safety and we had an appropriate policing plan in place for last night’s demonstration.We understand the concerns people have about their communities and will always balance the right to freedom of expression with the need to tackle crime without fear or favour.Officers were attacked and police vehicles were damaged. I strongly condemn that violence and there is no place for it in Scotland. ShareDefence minister Al Carns says defence investment plan 'not fit for purpose', as he praises Healey's 'serious service'Al Carns, the former Royal Marine who only became an MP in 2024, who was immediately appointed a defence minister and 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 markJohn 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, and 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, but 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 and 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.SharePippa Crerar on what Healey's resignation means for StarmerHere is a snap analysis of John Healey’s resignation by Pippa Crerar, the Guardian’s political editor. double quotation markJohn 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 - which 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 - and 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. ShareUnite's leader Sharon Graham says Healey's resignation shows work on defence investment plan has been 'utter chaos'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, and Unite has been campaigning for a settlement that will secure jobs.Commenting on Healey’s resignation, Graham said: double quotation markWhat 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. ShareHealey's resignation 'utterly damning' for Starmer, says SNPThe 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 markKeir Starmer is putting Scotland’s safety at risk by failing to deliver the vital defence investment that 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 - and it will be the final nail in his sorry time in office.Yet again, the Labour government is in chaos - and it is putting Scotland and the UK’s defence in jeopardy at the worst possible time. ShareBadenoch claims Healey's resignation shows Starmer's premiership 'falling apart'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 markHis health secretary resigned two weeks ago. His defence secretary has resigned at a critical time when we are facing global threats, and 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 and 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, and 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.)ShareJohn 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 markI have always respected John Healey. He clearly takes defence of the realm and defence of our interests more seriously than either Keir Starmer or Rachel Reeves. From Tom Tugendhat, the former security minister double quotation markThe 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 but the truth is now clear: the complacent confidence in peace is over. We must rearm. From Ben Obese-Jecty, a former soldier double quotation markThis is a hugely principled stance from John Healey. The chaos around the Defence Investment Plan and 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 markJohn Healey is an honourable man, well respected and 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. All credit to him. ShareEd 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 markHealey’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. ShareAnd these are from Emily Maitlis, one of the hosts of the News Agents podcast, on Healey’s resignation. double quotation markBREAKING: John Healey I have been told that John Healey only got the full offer on Monday afternoon - No 10 tried to rush and publish the Defence investment Plan on Thursday. Healey was clear that rushing through the plan was too risky for defence and 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 and would delay key transformation double quotation markI understand that 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%. Share

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