Robertson Warns UK Security at Risk Over Defense Cuts

Lord George Robertson, former NATO chief and co-author of the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), has warned that Britain's national security is 'in peril' due to political complacency and under-investment in defense. In a lecture at Salisbury Cathedral, he criticized Prime Minister Keir Starmer for failing to make necessary investments in military capabilities amid escalating global threats.

The Ministry of Defence faces a £28bn funding shortfall over the next four years as it struggles to meet ambitious targets set out in the 2024 SDR. The government's promised 10-year defence investment plan, aimed at addressing these gaps, has faced repeated delays amid budget disputes between departments.

Robertson told the Financial Times that there is a gap between Starmer’s rhetoric and action on defense, stating that the prime minister is 'not willing to make the necessary investment.' He also criticized finance minister Rachel Reeves for devoting only 40 words to defense in her budget speech last autumn and not mentioning it at all in an update last month. According to The Guardian, Robertson plans to accuse 'non-military experts in the Treasury' of 'vandalism' by prioritizing benefits over defense spending.

Two former Labour defence secretaries have urged ministers to slash welfare to boost spending on Britain's security. Lord Hutton, who served as both defence and work and pensions secretary in the last Labour government, urged Sir Keir to grip the issue as the 'defining moment in his premiership'. He warned that there is no real sign of an agenda for correcting the very steep rise in welfare payments.

General Sir Richard Barrons, another author of the SDR report, agreed with Robertson that there is an 'enormous gap between where we have to be to keep the country safe and where we actually are.' He warned that the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force were 'too small and too undernourished' following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Chief of the Defence Staff Sir Richard Knighton rejected accusations that the UK had been ill-prepared for current conflicts.

In 1990, at the end of the Cold War, the army had 153,000 regular soldiers, which has now dropped to 73,790. The number of reservists has fallen from 76,000 to 25,770. The Royal Navy had 48 major combat ships in 1990 but now has only 11 frigates and six destroyers. The RAF had over 300 combat jets in 1990, compared to the current fleet of 137 Eurofighter Typhoons and at least 37 Joint Strike Fighter F-35 Lightning II.

Analysts say the UK needs to invest considerably more in military technology, particularly uncrewed aircraft systems or drones. The threat from drones has been highlighted in the Ukraine conflict where they now kill more people than traditional artillery. Responding to the criticisms from Lord Robertson, the government said it is planning 'the largest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War'. However, this is a low bar because defence spending has been on an almost constant downward path since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The UK's spending of 2.3% of GDP in 2025 put it just above the mid-point of spending by Nato members. The government has committed to a NATO target to spend 5% of GDP on 'national security' by 2035, made up of 3.5% of GDP on 'core defence' and another 1.5% of GDP going on things like protecting critical infrastructure.