Sir Keir Starmer has announced the “biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War” as he confirmed the UK would spend 2.5 per cent of GDP [gross domestic product] by 2027.
The Prime Minister unveiled the policy in a statement to the House of Commons after reports he was set to hike the UK’s military funding amid growing pressure from US President Donald Trump on NATO members to spend more on their own security.
UK defence spending will now rise from the current 2.3 per cent of GDP – a measure of national income – to 2.5 per cent within two years, with a new ambition to reach three per cent in the next Parliament, Sir Keir said.
It also comes after Trump began talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on ending the war in Ukraine, branded Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a “dictator” and suggested Kyiv was to blame for the conflict, ahead of a crucial visit by Starmer to Washington this week.
Starmer told MPs: “We must find courage in our history, courage in who we are as a nation, because courage is what our own era now demands of us.
“So starting today, I can announce this government will begin the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War.
“We will deliver our commitment to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence, but we will bring it forward so that we reach that level in 2027, and we will maintain that for the rest of this Parliament.
“And let me spell it out, that means spending £13.4bn more on defence every year from 2027.”
To fund the increase, Starmer said international development assistance aid will be slashed from its current level of 0.5 per cent of gross national income to 0.3 per cent in 2027.
“In the short term, it can only be funded through hard choices… we will cut our spending on development assistance, moving from 0.5 per cent of GNI (gross national income) today, to 0.3 per cent in 2027, fully funding our increased investment in defence,” he told MPs.
And the Prime Minister set out: “I’ve long argued in the face of ongoing generational challenges, all European allies must step up and do more for our own defence.
“So subject to economic and fiscal conditions, and aligned with our strategic and operational needs, we will also set a clear ambition for defence spending to rise to three per cent of GDP in the next Parliament.
“I want to be very clear, the nature of warfare has changed significantly. That is clear from the battlefield in Ukraine, and so we must modernise and reform our capabilities as we invest.”
He added: “This investment means that the UK will strengthen its position as a leader in NATO and in the collective defence of our continent, and we should welcome that role.
“It is good for our national security. It is also good for the defining mission of this government – to restore growth to our economy.”