Starmer’s leadership under further pressure after defence ministers quit – UK politics live

Good morning. This time yesterday Keir Starmer’s leadership was already in peril, with many in his party assuming that he will be replaced by Andy Burnham at some point later this year, but there was a consensus that, on defence and international security, his record was impressive. John Healey ’s surprise resignation as defence secretary blew that apart. Later, after 8pm last night, Al Carns , the armed forces minister, also resigned over the defence investment plan.

And you can read the exchange of letters between Starmer and Healey here .

In his letter to Healey, Starmer defended the defence investment plan (Dip), which has not been published but which prompted Healey’s resignation because, when he saw what he thought was the final version on Monday, he concluded that it did not commit enough money to the armed forces. Starmer said:

double quotation mark You are also right that we have to go further. The defence investment plan does just that — delivering an unprecedented increase in defence spending in a sustainable way. It will provide the resources our military needs to keep us safe and the clarity the British defence industry needs to plan. It will make the big strategic investments we need for the long term and give the certainty which private finance needs to invest. It will allow our armed forces to transform and modernise and back them with the tools they need to change the way we fight — and to deter our enemies. And crucially it will ensure the money spent is spent wisely and used to back jobs and growth here in Britain.

That implied the version of the Dip that was unacceptable to Healey would not be changed.

But this morning Peter Kyle , the business secretary, has been giving interviews on behalf of the government – and he implied it was still being finalised.

Kyle told Times Radio “the plan is being developed” and “we are determined to get it right”. And on Sky News he said:

double quotation mark We are setting [the Dip] out before the Nato summit, [in] early July, what that looks like, and we are just finalising those plans.