British Army 'hollowed out and underfunded', says Ben Wallace

Ukraine conflict 'has exposed serious shortfalls in Britain's war-fighting capability', government committee told

British Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace meets British troops at Tapa Army Base, Estonia, on January 19. Reuters

A defence minister told the House of Commons on Monday that the British Army is in “urgent need of recapitalisation”, but Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak “get that”.

The comments by James Heappey came after the Conservative chairman of the defence select committee pressed him on remarks attributed to a senior US general that the British Army is no longer regarded as a top-level fighting force.

According to Sky News, the US general privately told Defence Secretary Ben Wallace: “You haven’t got a tier one – it’s barely tier two.”

“Could I invite the minister to respond to comments from the United States, our closest security ally, which tally with the defence committee’s own findings that this conflict in Ukraine has exposed serious shortfalls in the war-fighting capability of the British Army?" Tobias Ellwood asked in the Commons.

Mr Heappey replied: “I think everybody is clear. The Secretary of State has said many times, as have I and other ministerial colleagues, that serial under-investments in the Army over decades has led to the point where the Army is in urgent need of recapitalisation.

“The Chancellor and the Prime Minister get that and there is a budget coming.”

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace - in pictures

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, centre, at Manchester airport in December meeting members of the military covering for striking Border Force officers. AP

Mr Wallace gives interviews after viewing Ukrainian troops performing exercises at a military centre in south-east England, in November. Getty Images

Mr Wallace watches Ukrainian soldiers take part in a military exercise in the north of England in November. Getty Images

Mr Wallace sells poppies to members of the media as he leaves a Cabinet meeting in Downing Street in November. Getty Images

Mr Wallace speaks at the annual Conservative Party conference in October. Getty Images

Mr Wallace and former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng arrive for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in September. PA

Then Conservative leadership hopeful Liz Truss and Mr Wallace visit an engineering company in Huddersfield ahead of a hustings event in August. Getty Images

Mr Wallace speaking to new recruits to the Ukrainian army being trained by UK armed forces personnel in Manchester, in July. PA

Mr Wallace and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a meeting in Kyiv, in June. Reuters

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, right, with Mr Wallace during an honour cordon ceremony at the Pentagon in May. AP

Former prime minister Boris Johnson and Mr Wallace onboard HMS Dauntless in Merseyside, in March. PA

Mr Wallace hosting a meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force Defence Ministers at Belvoir Castle in February. AFP

Mr Wallace and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu shake hands during their February meeting in Moscow. EPA

Shortly afterwards, Mr Wallace suggested the armed forces had been “hollowed out and underfunded”, but he called on Labour to accept some responsibility for the situation.

Shadow defence secretary John Healey said that when Labour left government in 2010, the British Army “stood at over 100,000 full-time troops and we were spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence”.

“The serious hollowing out has happened since. Who does he think has been in charge over the last 13 years?” Mr Healey asked.

Mr Wallace responded: “You only have to listen to the veterans on this side to understand their experience under a Labour government.

“Snatch Land Rovers – let’s remember that and all that awful mess as a result of the Labour government’s investment.

“If {Mr Healey] wants to be the next secretary of defence, he should come here and get off his chest the shortcomings that his former government did.

“I’m happy to say that we have hollowed out and underfunded. Will he do the same? Or will he hide behind petty party politics?”

The history of wargaming - in pictures

Iraqi military officers discuss security operations over a 'wargaming' table at Iraq's Permanent Joint Operations Centre in Basra. AFP

Slovenian soldiers review a map as US Army officers look on during Immediate Response 2013 in Zagreb, Croatia. Photo: US Army

A wargame at the US Marine Corps War College in April 2019. Photo: Public Domain

Prussian officers play 'Kriegsspiel' in this illustration from August 1872. Photo: Public Domain

Students participate in analytic wargames designed to explore solutions for some of the Department of Defence's most pressing national security concerns. Photo: Public Domain

Geospatial engineers from the New York Army National Guard's 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team construct a sand table. Photo: US Army

Members of the New York Army National Guard's 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team review the operations plans during combined arms rehearsal. Photo: US Army

Geospatial engineers in the New York Army National Guard's 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team build a sand table to prepare for the headquarters' combined arms rehearsal in Fort Irwin, California, in October 2011. Photo: US Army

Downing Street acknowledged there had been “underfunding” of the military but insisted that billions of pounds had been committed to equipment.

“We certainly agree there has been underfunding and it’s right that we are putting billions more into our armed forces," Mr Sunak's official spokesman said.

“We recognise that the armed forces have not received the money needed in successive years.

“That’s why we put into place the £242 billion ($299bn) 10-year equipment plan and it’s why we raised the defence budget so we continue to be the largest defence budget in Europe.

“That investment is the biggest in the UK defence industry since the Cold War.”