Keir Starmer’s new Defence Secretary arrived for a Nato summit today with no plan for extra funding.
Dan Jarvis stressed the ‘challenging’ international situation as he walked into the gathering with counterparts at the alliance’s HQ in Brussels.
Mr Jarvis took over the job a week ago after the dramatic resignation of John Healey, who accused the PM and Rachel Reeves of failing to keep the country safe.
That was the culmination of months of haggling over how to fill an estimated £28billion hole in defence budgets over the next four years.
The Treasury had only agreed to an uplift of around £10billion, with no target for increasing spending to 3 per cent of GDP in this Parliament.
And Sir Keir has signalled that although Mr Jarvis could reprioritise parts of the Defence Investment Plan, he will not have any more cash available.
Dan Jarvis stressed the ‘challenging’ international situation as he walked into the gathering with counterparts at the alliance’s HQ in Brussels
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (pictured left with Mark Rutte) is among the ministers in Brussels today
Nato chief Mark Rutte has insisted all member states should present ‘clear, concrete and credible plans’ for defence spending to hit 3.5 per cent of GDP by 2035. An extra 1.5 per cent is meant to be allocated to ‘resilience’, in a deal responding to pressure from Donald Trump.
And US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth swiped at the ‘era of free riding’ this morning, criticising Nato members that ‘have yet to show a credible path to meeting their Hague commitments’. He said America’s stance on Nato would depend on allies spending more.
Mr Healey’s resignation letter last week suggested the UK was only on course to spend 2.68 per cent on core defence by 2030 as a result of commitments in the DIP.
The plan remains unpublished after Mr Healey’s exit, though ministers insist it will be released before the Nato leaders’ summit in Ankara, Turkey, which begins on July 7.
Mr Jarvis ignored questions as he arrived this morning, but said it was ‘a huge honour to be appointed by the Prime Minister last week’.
He added: ‘It’s very clear to me, as the new Defence Secretary for the United Kingdom, that this is a moment of challenge.
‘The international security is incredibly challenging, and that’s why this gathering here today is so particularly important.’
He said Nato allies must continue to support Ukraine against Russia’s invasion and bolster the alliance’s collective deterrence capabilities.
‘Of course we want to work very closely with our European allies in terms of our own collective security, both for Europe and for the United Kingdom,’ Mr Jarvis added.
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is among the ministers in Brussels today.
In a challenge to Nato members yesterday, Mr Rutte said: ‘Ahead of the summit in Ankara, allies will highlight how they’re delivering on commitments made in The Hague last year. Investing 5 per cent of GDP in defence by 2035. That’s what we agreed.
‘So, I expect nations to present clear, concrete and credible plans to reach that goal. Ideally, well ahead of the agreed timeline. And many are already showing that they are doing exactly that.’
Sir Keir has signalled that although Mr Jarvis could reprioritise parts of the Defence Investment Plan, he will not have any more cash available (pictured together last week)
