Two defence ministers resigned in a single day on Thursday, plunging Keir Starmer’s premiership into its gravest crisis yet. Defence Secretary John Healey quit first, followed within hours by Armed Forces Minister Al Carns, both accusing the prime minister of failing to commit the money needed to keep Britain safe.
The resignations were triggered by an ongoing internal row over funding of the government’s defence investment plan (DIP), which had been due last autumn but was repeatedly delayed. Healey, in his resignation letter, made scathing criticisms, accusing Starmer of being “unable” to commit to the spending needed. The proposed plan would take military spending to 2.68% of GDP by 2030; Healey wanted 3%.
“Two defence ministers quit over funding, but Starmer insists he has a duty to stay on.”
Starmer, speaking a day later, insisted he had made “hard-edged” choices, including cuts to overseas aid to free up money for defence. “Defence is my number one priority,” he told the BBC, and would remain so at future spending reviews. The government has already committed to increasing defence spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035.
But the prime minister’s tone was defensive. In a veiled warning to potential leadership challengers, he said: “Whoever is prime minister is going to face the same prevailing winds as I am facing, none of that is going to change.” Asked if he would fight any challenge, he replied: “If it does happen, I will fight.” He said he did not want to “plunge” the country into the “chaos” of a leadership election, adding: “This is not about personal vanity, it is not about stubbornness, it is about a very deep sense of duty.”
The resignations landed as Rachel Reeves remains trapped inside her own fiscal rules, and the Strategic Defence Review, meant to supply a plan, delivered rhetoric rather than method: it announced a “new era of threat” and “NATO first” but no clear path. The New Statesman noted that European Nato states already spend far more than Russia – $559bn in 2025 against Russia’s $190bn – while the US seeks $1.5tn a year. The Ministry of Defence’s equipment plan is already £17bn in the red, and the F-35 programme has delivered a “disappointing return” for £11bn spent, with through-life costs possibly reaching £70bn.
On Friday evening, replacements were announced: Louise Sandher-Jones becomes armed forces minister, Calvin Bailey veterans minister, Angela Eagle security minister, and Dan Jarvis – who replaced Healey – defence secretary. Starmer acknowledged he “needs to turn things around”, but insisted he has a “very sound platform” and that his government has stabilised the economy. The question now is how long that platform can hold.