Sir Keir Starmer has announced a £15bn increase in military spending in one of his final acts as prime minister — but left his successor, widely expected to be Andy Burnham, with a £4.7bn shortfall to plug. The defence investment plan (DIP), delayed since last autumn, will raise annual defence funding to £80bn by 2029, funded by cutting long-term investment budgets across other government departments by 1%. The Treasury confirmed that only £10.3bn in savings had been identified, meaning Burnham must find the remaining £4.7bn in his first Budget this autumn.
The announcement triggered immediate political fallout. Former defence secretary John Healey resigned earlier this month in protest, while the i Paper branded the gap a “£4.7bn hole” and a “gift” to Burnham. The Times reported that the “PM in waiting” was not told in advance about the shortfall and now faces having to “raise taxes or cut spending”. The Daily Express said Starmer had been “blasted” for his “refusal to rein in” welfare spending, and the Daily Mail called the black hole “indefensible”, accusing the outgoing PM of “short-changing Britain’s military”. The Metro noted that “jam-busting road projects will have to be sacrificed”.
“Starmer's £15bn defence plan leaves Burnham with £4.7bn unfunded gap, triggering political backlash and budget cuts.”
To fund the increase, the Department for Transport is making £700m in savings from roads projects, with the A38 Derby Junctions and A46 Newark Bypass schemes considered for cancellation. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero is finding an additional £2bn from its budget. Starmer ruled out further borrowing, saying the money would come from trimming investment elsewhere. In a speech, he said the plan would reverse the “corrosive hollowing out” of the armed forces under the Conservatives.
The DIP commits more than £64bn to strengthening the UK’s nuclear deterrent, including new submarines and F-35A fighter jets capable of carrying nuclear bombs. It also allocates £5bn for a “drone transformation” for the armed forces, more than £8bn for the global combat air programme (Gcap) — a joint project with Japan and Italy to build next-generation stealth jets — and funding for six new warships. The Royal Navy is set to become a “hybrid navy” using self-controlled vessels and AI, while the Royal Air Force will develop autonomous fighter jets and bring an “uncrewed electronic warfare drone system” into service in 2026.
Lord Dannatt, the former head of the British Army, was interviewed by Channel 4 News about whether the plan is enough to protect Britain. Burnham has yet to comment on the plan, leaving questions over whether he will raise taxes, cut spending further, or find alternative savings to fill the hole Starmer has left him.