Lame duck Keir Starmer passes buck to Andy Burnham as defence plan ‘unravels’ in PMQs

Keir Starmer was skewered for “laughing” alongside his Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, during a Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) grilling about his defence spend.

Opposition leader Kemi Badenoch accused the outgoing Prime Minister of lumbering his likely successor Andy Burnham with a weak outlay.

“Defence of the realm is the first duty of government and Britain is facing a moment of danger unlike anything in our lifetimes”, she said.

“We need a plan to fund our armed forces in this moment, they are the government for now, not 10 years ago. Labour’s plan is too weak, too little, too late.

“If his successor does not want to be complicit in this failure, he should come out and condemn this plan. The money must be found, Mr Speaker, and that money should come from cutting welfare, something these Labour MPs will not do.”

Sir Keir snapped back by pointing to the Tories’ record in government, in which they cut defence spending.

The Prime Minister said Mrs Badenoch’s rhetoric was “all talk” during the tense exchange.

“No lectures from them, they failed in the first duty of government”, he said.

“Never will they defend their record, 14 years of failure. They sit there and pretend it didn’t happen, they hollowed out the armed forces and we’re correcting that.”

Mrs Badenoch said £5billion was missing from the Defence Investment Plan, which she claimed relied on £11billion of unidentified savings.

She asked whether Andy Burnham was aware “that he was going to have to find £5billion for the Prime Minister’s plan”.

The PM took to the dispatch box but refused to answer the question, instead continuing to insist Britain will now spend far more on defence compared to when he first took office.

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Ed Davey questions Prime Minister on leaving Britain vulnerable to missile attacks 

Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, asked the Prime Minister why he has left the UK vulnerable to missile attacks, highlighting the ongoing war in Ukraine and the use of drones in the conflict.

He also said the Government has rejected Lib Dem proposals to use military bonds to fund defence.

Sir Keir Starmer responded: "Our defense investment plan gives our country what we need to fight now and into the future, the capability that has been assessed through the strategic review.

"Bonds, which we looked at very closely, are simply borrowing by another name.

"We are already borrowing in a way which requires us to spend £1 in every £10 on servicing the interest on that, and I would gently point out, before he carries on that he sat in a Cabinet that cut defense spending by 22 per cent."

Keir Starmer demands the Conservatives apologise for 'hollowing out' military 

The outgoing Prime Minister swiped at the Conservatives over the lack of investment in defence, demanding they apologise for "hollowing out" the military.

In an aggressive exchange between the two leaders, Sir Keir said to Mrs Badenoch: "They cut defense 2.5 per cent down to 2.3 per cent in their 14 long years of what you do on welfare.

"They put the bill up by £88million, so no lectures from them. They failed in the first duty of Government, and they won't defend their record, will they?

"They won't stand here and defend it, because they know never do they stand here and defend their record, because they can't, 14 years of failure, they don't get up and apologise, which is what they should do, because they would admit what we all know, how much they failed, so they just sit there pretending it didn't happen.

"Well, it did happen. You hollowed out the armed forces, we're correcting you."

'Too weak to cut welfare when he had the chance' - Kemi Badenoch 

Kemi Badenoch called Sir Keir Starmer "weak" over allocating the right funds for the Defence Investment Plan.

She said: "The reason that he is in this mess is because he was too weak to cut welfare when he had the chance. There are only three ways to find the missing £5billion: increased borrowing, increased taxes, cut welfare. Which one will he recommend to the member of Makerfield?"

Sir Keir responded: "They do not understand it because they lost control of the public finances. In addition to war on defense and security, we have taken control of the public finances."

The Defence Investment Plan was published yesterday, but explained £4.7billion of the required funding would be found in the Autumn budget.

This has been criticised widely as the outgoing Prime Minister leaves a funding blackhole for this successor.

Britain falling dangerously behind its allies on military investment, says Kemi Badenoch

Kemi Badenoch warned the Government is making Britain fall dangerously behind its allies in defence spending

She said: "Poland has increased their funding to 4.8 per cent, Germany has increased theirs to 3.7 per cent this year. Russia will spend 10 per cent of GDP on defence. Meanwhile, Britain is spending it all on welfare. Even the limited plan that he has announced has completely unravelled because he hasn't found the money to pay for it."

Sir Keir Starmer hit back, pointing to what he described as the biggest boost of defence investment since the 1980s.

He said: "Their [the Conservatives'] record is cutting defence spending. My record is raising it to £300billion pounds and rising. We have given our armed forces the biggest pay rise for 20 years and increased defence funding by £15billion a year. That's a record I'm proud to stand on."

Kemi Badenoch quizzes the Defence Investment Plan funding blackhole 

Leader of the Opposition Kemi Badenoch questioned the Prime Minister over the Defence Investment plan's lack of funding, arguing the budget is half of what was required to get the military into full readiness.

Sir Keir Starmer responded: "I'm very proud that this Labour Government has delivered two major funding increases in just two years.

"The first, which was funded by overseas aid, took us to £270billion over the spending review period. That is a record. The Defense Investment Plan gives us capability we need for the future that sets a new record of £300billion pounds over the next four years.

"That will be invested in drones and autonomous weapons, the largest ever investment. Strength for UK's nuclear capability and naval bases in the most significant way for 45 years, and confirming our commitment to the next generation of fighter jets. That is what is needed to keep our country safe."

Keir Starmer opens PMQs for the second-to-last time

Sir Keir Starmer, the outgoing Prime Minister addressed MPs in the Commons today, expressing his condolences to the people of Venezuela following the earthquake last week, the NHS's 78th birthday and the Defence Investment Plan's (Dip) publication.

On the Dip, he said: "Our defense investment plan commits more to investment on our armed forces. It delivers the modern keep and capabilities our personnel need to keep us safe, meaning we buy British to create jobs here at home and strengthen our international leadership."

Andy Burnham assures Defence Secretary military will get the funding it needs 

Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis said he had “assurance” that Andy Burnham would ensure investment in the military.

During a visit to Cambridge Aerospace, Mr Jarvis said: "I absolutely have the assurance that, as Prime Minister, Andy Burnham will make sure that we’ve got the investment coming into defence.

"That is good for our nation, good for our national security, but it’s also good for economic prosperity and its companies and workers in this part of the country that I think will benefit very well from the new investment that we’ve announced."

Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis defends £4.7billion blackhole in Defence Investment Plan

Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis said he will have "conversations" with the next Prime Minister about defence investment while insisting it was "not unreasonable" to leave the £4.7billion blackhole for the next "major fiscal event".

Speaking at missile manufacturer Cambridge Aerospace, he said: "I think, though, it is not unreasonable to accept the basic point that when you are committing billions and billions of pounds of investment, that in the normal order of business those kind of commitments are made in the context of a major fiscal event.

“There will be a spending review next year. I will be making the case for defence. I’m sure that that is a case that will be supported very closely by the Chiefs.

“Obviously, there will be conversations that will have to be taking place with the person who’s going to be the next prime minister, but fundamentally, my job is to fight hard for defence.

“That’s what I’ve done for the past two weeks, and that’s what I intend to keep doing.”

John Swinney hits back at Andy Burnham after comments over Scots feeling distant to Holyrood 

Scottish First Minister John Swinney has rejected Andy Burnham's claim that parts of Scotland feel as distant from Holyrood as they do from Westminster, saying the presumptive Prime Minister is not in a "strong position to lecture" him.

Mr Burnham has pledged to redistribute power across the UK, saying his plans for a "No10 North" would make "power flow into places like Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee, Paisley and Easterhouse".

But Mr Swinney dismissed the remarks as "polemics", saying: "I don't agree with them that areas feel distant from Holyrood. The city of Dundee just re-elected SNP members of the Scottish Parliament and the Labour Party got terrible results in the city."

He added: "If Andy Burnham is going to become the Prime Minister, he should have a substantive discussion with the Scottish Government and me about how we empower and strengthen the powers of the Scottish Parliament, and I'll be a willing partner in doing that."

Road budgets cut to fund defence rather than welfare

Defence minister Luke Pollard has confirmed £700million is being diverted from the roads budget to help fund the increase in defence spending, acknowledging the decision would affect some programmes and local communities.

Speaking to GB News, he said the unprecedented scale of the defence spending increase meant difficult choices had to be made elsewhere.

He added: "When it comes to it, I know the threats we're facing as a nation are real, and they are growing."

He said the investment would mean "more money for our armed forces, more kit and equipment, and importantly, an end to the scandal of our military personnel living in appalling accommodation", pointing to £9billion earmarked to rebuild or refurbish nine in ten military homes.

Mr Pollard dodged questioning on why the Government was not reforming welfare budgets to fund defence spending.

£4.7billion blackhole 'fairly common Government practice', says defence minister

Luke Pollard Minister for Defence Readiness said the £4.7billion funding for the Defence Investment Plan (Dip) which has been left for the autumn budget to fill is "fairly common Government practice".

Speaking to GB News, he said: "£4.7billion of that increased defence budget will be set out in the autumn budget, which, as you will know, is fairly common Government practice - something done by previous Governments that announce the policy intent and the detail of how that is afforded at the next budget, or the next fiscal event."

The budgetary blackhole has been criticised due to the Dip's delay and is seen as Sir Keir Starmer leaving the issue for his likely successor Andy Burnham and his not-yet-known Chancellor to deal with.

Andy Burnham and defence ministers kept in dark over Defence Investment Plan budget

Incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham was only informed about the £4.7billion blackhole in the Defence Investment Plan (Dip), a defence minister has said.

Luke Pollard told Sky News: "Downing Street have a close dialogue with Andy’s team … I understand they’ve been keeping him close to the process, and told him yesterday when the Treasury published the statement and the breakdown of the financial costs."

He continued to say he only saw the budget breakdown from the Treasury when the Dip was published yesterday.

'Keir Starmer has left toxic legacy' - Chris Philp condemns Defence Investment Plan blackhole 

Chris Philp Shadow Home Secretary has condemned the Defence Investment Plan (Dip) which was published yesterday, after a six-month delay, describing Sir Keir Starmer's legacy as "toxic".

Speaking to GB News, he said: "When the government announced yesterday, the total amount of extra money [for the Dip] - £5billion of it, a third of it was totally unfunded.

"They've got no idea at all where it's going to come from. So Keir Starmer has left a toxic legacy there, but even accounting for that, the amount of money they're giving is only about half of the military need to fund that defense properly."

Chris Philp: Reduction in small boats crossings not sign of genuine progress

Chris Philp Shadow Home Secretary said the small boat crossing is "far from being solved" despite a reduction in those making the journey this year, compared to the last, arguing the smaller number is down to the weather.

Speaking to GB News, he said: "I'm afraid to say the numbers in the first few months of this year were down to the weather in the Channel.

"In the last two or three weeks, when we had good weather, as we've all seen, numbers have been flooding across - about 3,000 illegal migrants have crossed the in the last three weeks."

He added: "So, I'm afraid to say the ruth is this problem is far from being solved."

Robert Jenrick speculates Tories will call for general election at PMQs today

Reform UK's Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick has speculated the Conservatives will call for a general election at PMQs today.

Writing on X this morning, he wrote: "Kemi Badenoch said there should be an election if Andy Burnham doesn’t fund defence properly.

"Yesterday Burnham’s spokesperson said the matter is now ‘settled’. It clearly isn’t - there’s still a massive hole in the Defence budget.

"Will the Tories call for an election today?"

The long-awaiting Defence Investment Plan was published yesterday, however, it left a £4.7billion blackhole for Prime Minister-in-waiting Andy Burnham to fill once he succeeds.

Keir Starmer's penultimate PMQs today 

Sir Keir Starmer will face his penultimate PMQs this lunchtime before he leaves No10.

The following MPs have been selected to pose questions to the Prime Minister today.

• Dr Al Pinkerton — Liberal Democrat, Surrey Heath
• Rachel Hopkins — Labour, Luton South and South Bedfordshire
• Mark Sewards — Labour, Leeds South West and Morley
• Alex Ballinger — Labour, Halesowen
• Kevin Bonavia — Labour, Stevenage
• Michelle Welsh — Labour, Sherwood Forest
• Catherine West — Labour, Hornsey and Friern Barnet
• Sarah Russell — Labour, Congleton
• Lewis Atkinson — Labour, Sunderland Central
• Luke Taylor — Liberal Democrat, Sutton and Cheam
• Sir Desmond Swayne — Conservative, New Forest West
• Mr Joshua Reynolds — Liberal Democrat, Maidenhead
• Lee Anderson — Reform UK, Ashfield
• Carla Lockhart — DUP, Upper Bann

Labour told to abandon plan to place migrants in £250k homes after GB News reveals new-build ban

Labour must "abandon plans" to place 83 asylum seekers at a new-build development and release an immediate public statement on the Stoke Heath site, local MP Mark Pritchard has told GB News.

Mr Pritchard, who was first elected as the MP for The Wrekin in 2005, put pressure on Shabana Mahmood immediately after the Home Secretary confirmed asylum seekers were banned from new-build accommodation.

Speaking to The People's Channel, Mr Pritchard said: "With so many empty public buildings available, where asylum seekers could be housed, and with so many of my constituents struggling to find suitable rental housing in their own local villages and towns, a ban on migrants being allowed to move into new-builds, would be a late but welcome development.

"The Government now needs to abandon plans to put asylum seekers into Stoke Heath's new build housing."

READ THE FULL STORY ON MARK PRITCHARD'S APPEAL HERE

'Built on FANTASY MATHS!' Read Ed Davey's brutal takedown of Andy Burnham's looming funding gap

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey unleashed a blistering attack on the "massive funding gap" yesterday in a brutal takedown of Sir Keir Starmer's legacy.

Sir Ed said: "This is Keir Starmer's legacy: A political choice to undermine our security and safety in the world. A political choice to leave our military heroes in mouldy homes and barracks, and a political choice to put jobs and business investment at risk across the country.

"Andy Burnham must now listen. There is another way. Liberal Democrat plans for defence bonds would raise £20billion of secure, ring-fenced investment to urgently rebuild our military capabilities. The brave men and women who put their lives on the line for our country deserve more than this late, underfunded offer."

He added: "The small print is out, and it looks like Starmer’s Defence Investment Plan is built on fantasy maths - leaving a massive funding gap for Burnham to fix. Liberal Democrat plans for Defence Bonds would deliver the real, secure cash boost our forces need."

Yesterday Sir Keir warned against issuing new "defence bonds" - even though some of his allies have urged to do exactly that.

"Defence bonds are just borrowing by another name," he said. "We've looked at this very carefully, but the fact is doing this through borrowing will push interest rates higher at a time when £1 in every £10 already goes on paying their interest."

Defence Secretary shoots down talk of £4.7billion 'poison pill' - 'Of course we've been talking to Andy Burnham!'

Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis last night denied the "poison pill" £4.7billion funding gap was a hand grenade for Andy Burnham, insisting it was in fact "absolutely the opposite".

Mr Jarvis repeatedly dodged questions on whether it had been made clear to Mr Burnham that he was being left with a funding gap.

“Of course we’ve been talking to Andy Burnham and his team about this plan,” he told the BBC, and pointed to Sir Keir Starmer’s alleged focus on a “smooth transition” of power.

“Andy Burnham has an absolute commitment to safeguarding our nation and ensuring that we’ve got the resources in place to defend our nation in the way that we think is necessary.”

Mr Jarvis then told Sky News that given the “massive expenditure” required to meet the commitment to increasing defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP by 2035, it was “not unreasonable” that “those kinds of decisions are done in the context of a spending review”.

Defence plan sparks already sparks Cabinet rebellion as minister demands urgent meeting over £700m roads cuts

Ministers have criticised the Government for its plans to slash roads funding by a staggering £700million to fund the long-awaited Defence Investment Plan (DIP).

Sir Keir Starmer confirmed that some road and energy projects would not be progressing forward as originally planned to boost defence spending.

The Department for Transport is expected to save £700million by cancelling road projects, including the A38 Derby Junctions and A46 Newark Bypass.

East Midlands Mayor Claire Ward has slammed the plans, saying that her region was facing the largest hit from the proposed defence spending cuts.

The potential moves have also been criticised by Lincoln MP - and Middle East Minister - Hamish Falconer and Mid Derbyshire MP Jonathan Davies.

Both said they were "disappointed" given the lack of clarity, in addition to the risk of it putting a "brake on economic growth".

Mr Falconer took to social media to publicly chastise Sir Keir - with the plans set to target the A46 Newark Bypass widening scheme.

He said: "I support further funding for the DIP, but the A46 upgrade programme is well advanced, long-awaited, excellent value for money and of strategic importance to both Lincoln and the region."

He also warned he would be seeking an "urgent meeting" with the incoming Prime Minister, Chancellor and Transport Secretary following the Labour leadership contest.

READ THE FULL STORY ON THE REBELLION HERE