Long-delayed defence spending plan with £5bn for drones to be published

Defence investment plan 'too little, too late' - shadow defence secretary published at 07:09 BST The defence investment plan is "too little, too late" and does not provide enough funding or military hardware to keep Britain safe, the shadow defence secretary says. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, James Cartlidge says that while some of the capabilities announced as part of the plan "sound impressive", they will come into operation too late as "the threat we face is today". He accuses Keir Starmer of being "too weak" to deliver more funding for the plan, whilst also criticising the delay in its publication. "We waited so long for this defence investment plan but because it hasn't got the money, it isn't delivering and it isn't delivering soon enough," he says. Cartlidge is then quizzed over the Conservatives' defence record during their 14 years in power, a period which saw Army numbers fall to their smallest since the Napoleonic era. He says it is a "fair question" and he accepts that since 1989 "all governments in power thought that we had this thing called the peace dividend and spending fell". He says once Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 the situation changed, and he is proud of his party's record in funding and arming Ukraine before that happened. Royal Navy to transform how it operates over the next few years published at 07:01 BST Frank Gardner Security correspondent Image source, Reuters Image caption, Ukraine is already deploying naval drones in its war with Russia The Royal Navy is to transform the way it operates over the next few years. Britain's six Type 45 destroyers, designed for air defence, will no longer be replaced by the planned Type 83 versions. Instead, the Navy is to get several cheaper ships called common combat vessels that will act as hubs controlling a fleet of uncrewed vessels or drones. The change is part of the long-delayed but now updated defence investment plan (DIP) being announced by the government today. It's called hybridisation – combining traditional crew-operated weapons platforms like frigates, with fleets of uncrewed and autonomous systems. In the Royal Navy's case, it gets to keep the frigates, which will be updated with new versions in the pipeline. But the big, powerful and expensive Type 83 destroyers, yet to be built, are now being scrapped in favour of the drones. Read Frank Gardner's full analysis piece £5bn allocated for drones in defence investment plan - MoD published at 06:56 BST Image source, UK MOD Crown Image caption, The drones are envisioned to help RAF jets become 'invisible' to enemy detection Today's defence investment plan will include more than £5bn to be spent on drones over the next four years, the Ministry of Defence says. The government department says the figure represents the largest ever drone investment in the UK armed forces and will create "thousands of British jobs". It will also help fund Europe’s biggest drone testing centre, the uncrewed systems centre, which was opened earlier this month in Swindon, as well as a new uncrewed systems taskforce to rapidly develop and field "new autonomous capabilities" with industry. The investment will see a "flexible, integrated force" of attack drones flying alongside Army helicopters, as well as RAF jets being made "invisible" to enemy detection, the MoD says. A hybrid Royal Navy consisting of crewed and uncrewed vessels is also envisioned, alongside at least six new warships being built. Previous defence secretary resigned saying funding plans fell 'well short' published at 06:48 BST Image source, Reuters Former Defence Secretary John Healey resigned earlier this month in a scathing letter warning that the level of military spending proposed "falls well short" of what's needed to protect the UK. Internal wrangling over defence spending has been rumbling on for months following multiple delays to the defence investment plan, which was originally due last autumn. Healey had expressed concern that the financial settlement for the armed forces was "backloaded" when the "pressure of operations and imperative to speed up readiness to fight is in the first two years". He said the prime minister had been "unable" and the Treasury "unwilling" to "commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats". Dan Jarvis, the security minister and a former British Army officer, was then appointed to replace Healey in the cabinet role, and has pushed for additional funding and changes to the defence investment plan since then. 'Game-changing investment' - Starmer published at 06:40 BST Image source, PA Media The new defence investment plan will give the UK's armed forces the "cutting-edge capabilities" they need to deter evolving threats and keep the British people safe, Keir Starmer has said. The prime minister says the "game-changing investment" would "strengthen our armed forces on land, at sea and in the air, ensuring our servicemen and women" have the equipment they need to keep Britain safe. Starmer also says the plan will help drive growth across the UK by "backing British innovation, British industry and British jobs and delivering opportunity to every corner of the country". He adds that the plan will give the UK's industrial base the "certainty and support it needs to develop and scale the technologies that will keep our country safe and secure long into the future". Defence investment plan follows last year's strategic defence review published at 06:35 BST The defence investment plan expected later today follows the wide-ranging strategic defence review published in June last year. That review, carried out by former Labour Defence Sectary Lord Robertson, outlined a shift towards "warfighting readiness" to deter threats and pledged billions in extra spending for extra ammunition, next-generation fast jets, drones, and new attack submarines. But it warned that the UK's armed forces were "not currently equipped" to fight opponents like Russia or China, saying the Ministry of Defence must embrace new technologies such as artificial intelligence, robots and lasers, The report warned the UK is already experiencing daily attacks on its critical national infrastructure, testing the economy's vulnerabilities "and challenging its social cohesion". Still unclear how £28bn gap in defence spending will be filled published at 06:31 BST Frank Gardner Security correspondent This, says the Ministry of Defence, will be the largest ever drone investment in UK armed forces – more than £5bn invested over the next four years. Not before time, say military commentators who note how drones have recently transformed the way war has been fought in Ukraine and the Strait of Hormuz. The transformation will apply to all three services. The Royal Navy will receive a raft of surveillance, reconnaissance and attack drones, in place of the new Type 83 destroyers it was expecting to get. The Army is to get uncrewed ground vehicles, similar to the ones deployed with such effect on the frontline in Ukraine. And the RAF will get autonomous fighter jets that will fly alongside planes with a pilot still in the cockpit. This is the face of modern, 21st Century warfare. But what’s missing from the plans published so far is how the government plans to plug the yawning £28bn gap in defence spending, something that prompted the previous Defence Secretary John Healey to resign. Long-delayed defence spending plan to be published published at 06:29 BST Image source, Getty Images A long-delayed military spending plan will be published today, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer saying it will keep Britain "safe and secure long into the future". The Ministry of Defence says the defence investment plan (DIP) includes £5bn worth of investment to increase the armed forces' use of drones and autonomous weapons. Earlier this month, the Treasury and No 10 agreed a £13.5bn funding increase, well short of the £28bn the MoD wanted - though new Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis has pushed for more in recent weeks. The row has seen two defence ministers - John Healey and Al Carns - resign over what they said was an inadequate funding increase in the original version of the plan. The disagreements over funding are also thought to be behind repeated delays to the document's publication, which was originally due last autumn. The Conservatives say it is "too little, too late", while the Liberal Democrats say the defence investment plan has "dangerously short-changed our armed forces". While the government has provided some details, we still don't have the full plan yet - it's due to be published later today. We'll have updates and analysis throughout.