Burnham weighs delaying defence spending roadmap as Treasury pushes back
The Times reported the spending review that would set the path to 3 per cent of GDP could be held alongside the next Budget rather than in the spring. The Treasury called talk of a delay 'pure rumour and speculation'.
Andy Burnham is considering delaying the announcement of how and when Britain will raise defence spending to 3 per cent of GDP, The Times reported on Tuesday, pushing back a key milestone on the path to meeting NATO's 3.5 per cent target by 2035.
The newspaper said ministers had been expected to hold a spending review in the spring, setting departmental budgets up to 2030 alongside the timetable for reaching 3 per cent. The review could instead be held alongside the next Budget, which would let the Government raise taxes or cut spending to fund the increase. One Whitehall source called next October the 'working assumption'.
The Treasury disputed the account. A finance ministry spokesperson told Reuters: 'The date of the Spending Review has not been set. This is pure rumour and speculation.' A government source told The Times it would be wrong to describe the move as a delay, because ministers had never fixed a date for the review.
The date of the Spending Review has not been set. This is pure rumour and speculation.Treasury spokesperson
Chancellor John Healey had said earlier this year that he would set out an initial path to 3 per cent at the next spending review. Mr Healey, who became Chancellor in July, is due to deliver his first Budget on 28 October. The Office for Budget Responsibility has estimated that reaching the interim goal would cost an additional 17.3 billion pounds, while Mr Healey must also close a 4.7 billion pound gap in the existing Defence Investment Plan.
The Times reported that hitting the NATO target would cost an extra 10 billion pounds a year. It said the Conservatives would answer with a pledge of 10 billion pounds for a British version of Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system, dubbed the 'Britannia shield', an integrated network of radar and interceptor missiles designed to defend critical national infrastructure against drone and missile threats.
Kemi Badenoch said the pledge showed the Conservatives were serious about keeping Britain safe, while Labour would still, in her words, 'not commit the money Britain needs for defence'. The Times reported that Mr Healey wanted to use this month's Budget to reassure markets on fiscal responsibility without large-scale tax rises, with economists expecting higher borrowing costs to halve his fiscal headroom.
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