Invest in UK defence now or 'be sorry later', warns senior MP

Tan Dhesi, Labour MP for Slough, told Nick Ferrari at Breakfast that it was "embarrassing" that the UK couldn't bring one Royal Navy asset to the Gulf region, despite seeing preparations being made by the United States for the conflict with Iran.

Warship HMS Dragon arrived in the eastern Mediterranean on Monday almost three weeks after its deployment was first announced.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced the destroyer would leave the UK for the Mediterranean earlier this month, after RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus was hit by a drone.

Mr Dhesi emphasised that the country is still not investing enough in defence and the UK needs to "meet the moment".

He was among a group of senior MPs to grill the Prime Minister about defence and the war with Iran and its impact on the UK on Monday afternoon.

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He told LBC: "We were seeing preparations by Donald Trump, the ramping up of military presence in an arrival around Iran in the region, and unfortunately, it was embarrassing that we couldn't even muster one single Royal Navy asset into the region.

"And I think that, along with the fact that we've got half a billion pounds worth of submarine maintenance which has had to be postponed due to a lack of dry dock facilities, all of that illustrates just how underprepared and under-resourced our armed services are.

"We need to invest in our defence now, otherwise we'll be sorry later."

Mr Dhesi added that Europe has been "over-reliant" on the United States for defence and security guarantees, which was highlighted in a report published by the Defence Select Committee in 2025.

President Trump's comments on Europe needing to step up when it comes to security are nothing new, he said, US presidents have been telling us this for decades.

However, he told LBC that now that President Trump is "not as interested" in our security and Russian President Vladimir Putin has invaded Ukraine, it is time to take this seriously.

The 10-year defence investment plan, which would set out how the UK will be resourced, has yet to be published despite promises that it would be shared by Christmas.

"We need to take our defence and security seriously," Mr Dhesi said.

"That's why I asked the Prime Minister, when is the fabled defence investment plan going to be published?

"Unfortunately, that is still not there.

"I have been urging the government for months now because it was promised last autumn, we need to give a clear signal to the British defence industrial base, to our allies as well as our adversaries, that we are serious about defence."