British defence minister John Healey quit on Thursday in a dispute over military spending, accusing Prime Minister Keir Starmer of failing to commit the resources that are needed to keep the country safe from heightened threats. The unexpected resignation, accompanied by a scathing public letter, compounds the pressure on Starmer when he is facing a likely leadership challenge and exposes the crisis at the heart of the British government - how it can ramp up defence spending when there is little money to spare and the welfare budget keeps rising.
Healey had been locked in talks with Starmer and finance minister Rachel Reeves for months over how to meet the additional military spending needed, delaying Britain's Defence Investment Plan, which was due last year.
"You have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats," Healey said in his letter to Starmer.
Healey's high-profile resignation comes as Starmer struggles to hold onto power, after Wes Streeting resigned as health minister in May and as another challenger, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, attempts to return to frontline politics to launch a leadership bid.
A government source said Starmer had cut spending in other government departments and would deliver a spending plan that would guarantee the capability the armed forces need. Britain, historically a great military power, was left exposed in March when it was unable to immediately deploy an advanced warship to Cyprus after its air base there was hit by an Iranian-made drone. Already contending with the US pivot away from protecting Europe, Britain is now the third biggest spender in Nato, having been overtaken by Germany in 2024, and the investment plan was aimed at bringing the armed forces to a state of "warfighting readiness".
The government has struggled to find the extra cash at a time when the economy is stagnating and both debt and the overall tax burden are at or close to their highest level in decades.
Healey, who had previously served in the governments of former prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, was widely liked by colleagues and the defence sector.
One Labour lawmaker said the resignation was a "hammer blow to Starmer". Another said it was now inevitable Starmer would be forced out of his job within months. A third said it had taken the Labour defence team completely by surprise. About a quarter of Starmer's lawmakers have called for him to step down after his Labour Party in early May suffered the heaviest losses for any British prime minister in local elections in more than three decades. - Reuters
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
