Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch pledged to slash welfare spending to raise Britain's military spending to 3 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade, piling pressure on Prime Minister Andy Burnham to match the target.
The Conservative leader outlined a £10billion package of savings to fund the military investment, which she described as vital to keeping Britain safe.
Mrs Badenoch said: 'The first duty of every Government is defence and the Conservatives will always put our defence first. That's why we are setting out our plans to reach three per cent on defence spending by the end of this Parliament through further cuts to welfare and restoring the two-child benefit cap.'
The Conservative Party serves as the main opposition party in the British Parliament. Gross Domestic Product, or GDP, represents the total monetary value of all finished goods and services produced within a nation and serves as the standard international measure for military expenditure comparisons. The two-child benefit cap is a UK welfare policy that limits financial support in Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit to the first two children in most families.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham ducked the issue again yesterday, despite fresh threats from Russia and growing pressure from his own Labour MPs to increase funding for Britain's cash-strapped Armed Forces.
Neither Mr Burnham nor Chancellor John Healey are willing to say whether they will find the money to boost defence spending. Mr Healey resigned from his previous post as defence secretary in June over former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's refusal to commit to the 3 per cent target, stating at the time that it was the minimum required to keep the nation safe.
Mrs Badenoch directly targeted the Chancellor over his previous stance, urging him to implement the Conservative proposals to secure military funding.
Mrs Badenoch said: 'John Healey resigned from Keir Starmer's government saying Labour were not keeping our country safe. Now he is the Chancellor he should adopt our plans and make sure our Armed Forces have the funding they need.'
Clash in the House of Commons
Mr Burnham faced severe criticism over the issue yesterday from a senior MP within his own party during parliamentary questions.
Tan Dhesi, the Labour chairman of the cross-party Commons defence committee, accused the Prime Minister of 'kicking the can down the road' by deferring a funding decision until next year's comprehensive spending review.
The House of Commons Defence Committee is a cross-party parliamentary select committee tasked with examining the expenditure, administration, and policy of the Ministry of Defence.
In a bruising intervention, Mr Dhesi warned that Mr Burnham's trademark optimistic bluster would not be enough to protect the country, telling the Prime Minister that it was 'imperative that we invest in our Armed Forces in the here and now'.
Mr Dhesi said: 'Defence is definitely one area where vibes alone just will not be enough. Rather than kicking the can down the road… will the Prime Minister urgently commit to charting a pathway to reaching three per cent of GDP being spent on defence by 2030?'
Mr Burnham appeared thrown by the hostility of the question and responded to Mr Dhesi: 'I have made that commitment, I have made it very clearly.'
However, Downing Street later confirmed that the Prime Minister is only committed to a much looser target of 3.5 per cent of GDP by 2035.
Rising International Security Threats
The political debate comes amid escalating international tensions and fresh warnings regarding Russian military posture in Europe.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has lashed out at Western nations as Russian forces continue to struggle in Ukraine. In recent days, Russia directly threatened the United Kingdom with 'catastrophic consequences' over British support for Ukraine.
Security concerns were heightened further this week when Germany revealed that Russia was responsible for a failed drone attack on Leipzig airport. Leipzig, located in eastern Germany, serves as a major European transport and aviation hub.
Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe reportedly travelled to Moscow last week to deliver a direct warning to Mr Putin against launching attacks on any NATO member nation. The NATO alliance, established in 1949, operates under a collective defence commitment where an attack against one member is considered an attack against all.
In his June resignation letter, Mr Healey revealed that UK intelligence agencies believe Russia could launch an attack against a NATO member country by 2030.
Despite these warnings, Britain has slid down the NATO military spending rankings in recent years. Under current Labour plans, UK defence expenditure will rise marginally from 2.6 per cent of GDP next year to 2.7 per cent by the end of the decade. By comparison, Germany expects its defence spending to reach 3.5 per cent by 2030, while Poland already spends 4.7 per cent of GDP on defence.
Details of the Proposed Welfare Cuts
Mrs Badenoch's proposal relies on extracting £10billion in savings from government spending, primarily by reducing the national welfare budget.
The largest single component of the Conservative plan involves reforming housing benefit, which the opposition estimates will yield at least £4billion annually. Housing benefit is state financial assistance provided to low-income households to assist with rent payments.
Reinstating the two-child benefit cap, which was abolished by Labour earlier this year, would generate an estimated £3.1billion. An additional £1billion would be raised by removing Value Added Tax (VAT) exemptions currently granted for Motability vehicles, a government-backed scheme that enables disabled individuals to lease vehicles using their mobility allowances.
The remaining portion of the £10billion funding package would be achieved through non-welfare savings. These include cancelling Labour's proposed Chagos Islands agreement, as well as reallocating funding away from new offshore windfarms and civil research and development programs.
Early Test for Burnham Administration
Defence spending has emerged as one of the most critical early political challenges facing Prime Minister Andy Burnham's government.
The dispute within the government dates back to June, when Mr Healey resigned as defence secretary after former Chancellor Rachel Reeves refused to establish a firm timetable for reaching the 3 per cent spending target. Although Mr Healey replaced Ms Reeves as Chancellor in July, he has since declined to commit to securing the required funding.
Defending his appointment in the House of Commons yesterday, Mr Burnham told MPs: 'The very reason I appointed this Chancellor to his position is because of his strong commitment to the defence of our country. We will fully fund the defence investment plan.'
Mrs Badenoch pressed the Prime Minister to act without delay, urging him to move faster and 'get serious about defending our nation'.
