LABOUR’S Shadow Defence Secretary has suggested that it may be forced to increase defence spending if it wins the next election.
John Healy told GB News: “I’ve set out a plan for a stockpile strategy, we clearly need that in order to produce what we have to continue to supply to Ukraine for their fight against the Russian invasion, but also to re-stock our own British armed forces.
“It took the MoD 287 days to get its act together after the invasion, even to get a contract in place for new anti-tank missiles, which have proved so valuable to Ukraine.
“And on defence spending, 25 other NATO nations since the invasion have already rebooted their defence plans and defence budgets. Britain’s done neither.”
In an interview during Breakfast with Stephen Dixon and Ellie Costello, Mr Healy said: “There’s a big test for me in next month’s new integrated review, that’s the Government’s plan for Britain in the world, and the Spring budget.
“The Chancellor has already said that we need to increase defence spending. These two tests next week will really tell us whether the Government’s able to take the big decisions needed to secure our support for Ukraine, but also Britain’s security for the long term or whether they’re really too worried about the week-to-week survival to take those big decisions.
“Putin’s in this for the long term, he thinks he can weaken the West’s resolve to stand with Ukraine.”
He added: “One of the arguments that Labour’s been making is that we’ve got to move beyond ad hoc announcements of military support for Ukraine, which have had our fullest support.
“But we’ve got to move to a 2023 plan and beyond, setting out the military, humanitarian economic assistance we’re willing to provide that will give Ukraine greater confidence that our supplies will be sustained
“It will help encourage other countries to do more, it will help gear up our own industry to ramp up production.
“And above all, it will signal to Putin that things are going to get worse, not better for Russia.”
Asked about supplying fighter jets, Mr Healy said: “Jets aren’t straightforward in the sense that they are complex, a lot of training is required, a lot of maintenance is required. And in fact, Britain doesn’t have the F-16 jets that Ukraine really needs.
“So this effort to support Ukraine is really about countries, coordinating whatever they can contribute and so Britain’s right to step forward.
“The Government’s had Britain’s Labour’s fullest support for its offer not just to train Ukrainian troops, but to train fast jet pilots now, and that’s a good contribution that Britain can make.”
He added: “Now, for me, the most important thing is concentrating on what we can provide to Ukraine over the next few weeks, because this is when they need to resist the fresh Russian onslaught, it’s when they need to be able to prepare for their own offensive as the weather changes.”
