If Britain’s defence isn’t ready, why is Labour still moving so slowly? Writes James Cartlidge MP

Yet today, Parliament’s own Defence Select Committee have delivered a starkly different verdict: Britain is not ready to defend itself.

The Committee found that the Government is lacking in its ability to protect the UK. They warn that the essentials of national security – readiness, resilience, and credible deterrence – are lacking because Labour are “moving at a glacial pace”.

For Keir Starmer, this should be a wake-up call. Instead, we see the same pattern: bold rhetoric from ministers followed by sober reality from the experts charged with scrutinising them.

Rather than prioritising defence readiness, Labour’s energy has been spent elsewhere – from surrendering the Chagos Islands, to putting British Army veterans back in the dock.

Their Defence policy documents have all been late; their Strategic Defence Review won’t deliver until the 2030s; and their own ‘Defence Readiness’ Bill doesn’t even have a legislative timetable.

Meanwhile, warfare is changing at a pace unprecedented in modern times. Britain faces threats that move far faster than this Government’s decision-making.

Readiness is not a press release – it is a commitment to sustained investment and the prioritisation of military risk over civil risk, e.g. health and safety.

I’m proud of how quickly we moved in Government to provide Ukraine with a vast quantity of munitions, following Putin’s 2022 invasion.

Almost single handedly at the outset of that terrible war, we stood by Ukraine – but whilst this support made us safer, it left gaps in our own inventory.

Take artillery – we gifted our AS90 guns to Ukraine, and as Defence Procurement Minister I prioritised their replacement, selecting the ‘Remote Controlled Howitzer’ for the British Army.

But Labour are yet to sign on the dotted line. Once again, the Government are not acting with the urgency the threat requires.

So the Defence Committee has confirmed what we have been saying for months – the gap between Labour’s words and Britain’s actual readiness is widening.

Warfare is changing rapidly but Labour are moving far too slowly.

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James Cartlidge MP is the Shadow Defence Secretary

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