Nuclear missile build-up as UK spends billions more on defence

Prime Minister Keir Starmer accepts 62-point defence review focused on security dangers

Matt Beamont, director of mechanical engineering, right, shows UK Defence Secretary John Healey a Storm Shadow missile at the MDBA plant in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. Getty Images

Britain has announced billions more pounds in spending on defence to show its rivals that it is serious about preparing for full-scale war with new missiles, nuclear platforms and increased troop numbers.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer launched the UK's Strategic Defence Review on Monday, which calls for an expansion of its nuclear deterrent.

A world shaken by population growth, climate change, nuclear proliferation and the digital age, and dominated by state-level confrontation

SDR authors

Ahead of the launch, he said it was time to flood the zone with new ­initiatives and new investments as war-fighting readiness was an overriding priority.

He described the review as a blueprint to make Britain a "battle-ready, armour-clad nation with the strongest alliances, and the most advanced capabilities, equipped for the decades to come". He also said it would provide a "defence dividend" as jobs are created.

Speaking at a shipyard in Glasgow, Mr Starmer said it was a “moment of danger and threat for our country” and all citizens of the UK had a role to play in the defence of the nation.

He said “three fundamental changes” would be made. “First, we are moving to war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces," he said.

“When we are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, the most effective way to deter them is to be ready, and frankly, to show them that we’re ready to deliver peace through strength.”

The second change is that the government will adopt a “Nato-first” stance towards defence so that everything it does adds to the strength of the alliance.

He added: “Third, we will innovate and accelerate innovation at a wartime pace, so we can meet the threats of today and of tomorrow, as the fastest innovator in Nato.”

But Mr Starmer could not say when his aim of raising defence spending to 3 per cent of the UK’s economic output would be realised, amid questions about whether the Treasury had guaranteed to fund it. The review was based on the 2.5 per cent target to be met from April 2027.

Defence Secretary John Healey said on Sunday that he had no doubt that defence spending would rise to 3 per cent of GDP in the foreseeable future, implying an extra £17 billion ($21.7 billion) in the annual budget. The review was led by former Nato secretary general George Robertson, a former Labour statesman, and makes 62 recommendations in its 150 pages.

Central to the plans are the construction of up to 12 new nuclear-powered attack submarines - delivering one every 18 months - to complement the investment of £15 billion in advanced missile warheads.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer, left, and Defence Minister John Healey visited a Vanguard class submarine off the coast of Scotland. Photo: Downing Street

While the review has been revised several times in recent months, its main themes are rearmament and "getting the armed forces to a stage where it would be ready to fight a war".

Other immediate drives by the government include £6 billion for new weapons, including £1.5 billion for new production lines.

When the government asserts that Russia is mounting digital attacks on the UK every day and other states, such as Iran, pose incessant dangers, there is a new offensive strategy. This means setting up a cyber command and investing £1 billion in digital capabilities.

The authors of the report used a newspaper article on Monday to say there may be an existential risk to the UK driven by a combination of factors. "The UK must protect its security, prosperity and values in a world shaken by population growth, climate change, nuclear proliferation and the digital age, and dominated by state-level confrontation," the authors wrote.

Other announcements:

• Boosting weapons and equipment stockpiles and making sure there is capacity to scale-up production if needed in a crisis or war
• Building at least six new munitions factories, generating 1,000 jobs
• Buying up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons in a move to support 800 defence jobs
• Transforming the Royal Navy into a 'hybrid' organisation blending drones with submarines and aircraft
• More than £1.5 billion of additional funding to repair and renew armed forces housing

Putting new submarines to sea at the rate of one every 18 months is designed to make sense of the £15 billion investment into the warhead programme. The British government remains committed to maintain a continuous-at-sea nuclear deterrent as it builds the new fleet of Dreadnought submarines and upgrades of the existing fleet.

“With new state-of-the-art submarines patrolling international waters and our own nuclear warhead programme on British shores, we are making Britain secure at home and strong abroad,” Mr Healey said.

From the late 2030s, the fleet of up to 12 SSN-Aukus conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines will replace seven Astute class attack submarines the UK is due to start operating. The build-up is part of a partnership with Australia and the US that has promised an "arc of security" between the three allies.

Mr Robertson said that Britain is entering "a new era of threat" as drones and artificial intelligence transform warfare. The document also describes the "immediate and pressing" danger posed by Russia, as well as urging the government to focus on China, Iran and North Korea.

Lord Robertson has described the four countries as a "deadly quartet" that were "increasingly working together".