New Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis warns UK faces ‘severe and acute’ threats amid row over defence plan

Speaking to LBC’s Natasha Clark, Mr Jarvis said the world had become significantly more dangerous since his time in the Army and since he entered politics.

“The world is a very dangerous place at the moment,” he warned.

“The world is much more dangerous than when I joined the Army 30 years ago. It’s much more dangerous than when I came into politics 15 years ago.

“The international environment is hugely contested, and the threats that we face here in the United Kingdom are severe and acute, and we’ve seen that recently with the increase in the national threat level.”

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Mr Jarvis said the Government must “lead by example” and ensure Britain is using “all of the tools at our disposal” to defend itself against hostile states and other adversaries.

He said: “We have to make sure that we lead by example in government, that we set the right tone in terms of our political discourse, and that we organise our defences and make sure that we are using all of the tools at our disposal to guard against our adversaries.

“That is the most important responsibility in government.”

The comments come after John Healey resigned as Defence Secretary amid a row over the defence investment plan, known as the DIP.

The long-delayed plan is understood to set out around £13.5 billion of spending, rather than the £28 billion over four years which officials said was needed to transform Britain’s Armed Forces into a future-proofed military.

Following Mr Jarvis’s appointment, there is not expected to be any extra money for the plan, with any changes likely to focus on where funding is allocated rather than the overall amount of cash available.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said the Prime Minister should resign if he cannot prove the plan will “protect our national security”.

Speaking at a press conference in central London on Monday, Mrs Badenoch said the plan should not be rushed out simply to answer the concerns raised by Mr Healey and other colleagues who quit the Government last week.

“There are three tests which must be met if the plan is to protect our national security,” she said.

Her first test was funding, including a call for Britain to raise defence spending to 3% of GDP by 2030 and, at a minimum, provide the £28 billion over four years asked for by defence chiefs.

Her second test was readiness, with Mrs Badenoch warning that spending must not be “backloaded” into the next Parliament.

Her third test was capability, saying the plan “should equip Britain with more lethal and operationally effective armed forces”.

She added: “If the Prime Minister is unable to provide the leadership within his Cabinet to deliver a defence investment plan that meets these three tests, he should resign now and make way for a leader who can.”

Mrs Badenoch also offered to lend Conservative votes to Sir Keir Starmer, or to another Labour prime minister if he loses a leadership challenge, to pass welfare cuts through Parliament to help pay for increases in defence spending.

“My party is going to work with any Labour leader in the national interest to cut the benefits bill to pay for defence,” she said.

She added: “Some things are too important for party politics, but if the Prime Minister won’t accept my offer, I will make the same offer today to Andy Burnham.”

Mrs Badenoch said she was offering “115 Conservative votes in Parliament for welfare reforms, 116 if you count my name as well”.

Defence minister Luke Pollard defended the Government in the Commons, describing the defence investment plan as “a good plan” while admitting he wants more money for defence.

He said Labour was ending the “hollowing out” of the Armed Forces under the Conservatives.

“But of course, I want more money in the defence budget,” he told MPs. “It’s a case that we continue to make as the profile of defence spending increases.”

Mr Pollard said he had worked “in lockstep” with Mr Healey, describing him as “a friend and mentor”.

“I was his deputy and I’m still standing here because he asked me to stay, and because we need continuity in this complex and difficult operational environment,” he said.

He added: “The disagreement in recent weeks was never about whether we should fund our forces, it’s about how fast we increase the spending for defence and on what capabilities, and that’s a serious argument to have.

“And I make no apology for pushing hard within the Government to win it, that is the job.”

Pressed by Liberal Democrat defence spokesman James MacCleary on whether he would resign if he failed to secure the minimum funding asked for by defence chiefs, Mr Pollard did not directly answer.

He later told MPs: “I have seen it, I’ve been involved with writing it. The plan itself is a good plan. The debate here is about the funding that goes into it.”

Mr Jarvis, a former Army officer, said his previous role as Security Minister had involved making difficult national security decisions, sometimes in the middle of the night.

“It was a job of work that kept me incredibly busy for the past two years as Security Minister,” he said.

“It did keep me awake on occasions. It woke me up on numerous occasions when I had to make difficult decisions in the dark about our national security.

“I suspect it will be precisely the same as the Defence Secretary, but that’s the nature of service.

“It’s a privilege to serve. It’s a privilege to have the opportunity to defend our nation, and it’s one that I intend to make the most of.”

Asked whether the defence investment plan would now be published, a No 10 spokeswoman said: “It’s being finalised with the new Defence Secretary and it will be published in due course and that work is ongoing and continuing at pace.”