John Baron MP presses Government and Labour over defence spending in House of Commons

MP: We need a significant and sustained increase based on proper assessment, not % GDP

In a debate yesterday evening in the House of Commons on Defence estimates, John Baron MP argued again for an increase in Defence spending and pressed the Labour Party to help move the dial regarding this debate.

Having raised spending with the Government side, in a question to the Labour front bench, John said:

“If we are to move the dial on defence spending, we need the support of both sides of the House. Can the shadow minister confirm that when the official Opposition ask for that increase in defence spending, it will not be just a one-off? It has to match our requirements, but it has to be sustainable.”

The consensus in response from across the House was that more needed to be spent, although few details were forthcoming.

John said afterwards:

“The increase should be based on a proper assessment of military requirements, and not on a % of GDP. It should then be sustained with inflation-linked increases and not be subject to the vagaries of the economy. And it needs cross party support to be enduring.”

“Some of us have long argued we need to spend much more on defence not only to act as a deterrent and help our allies when necessary, but also to give diplomacy a better chance of succeeding. Talking softly and carrying a big stick being the preferred approach. We are better able to do this if our hard and soft power capabilities are adequately resourced. Let us hope the penny is finally dropping across the political establishment.”

Notes to Editors:

1. Link to Debate in Hansards Defence Supplementary Estimate 2021-22 – Hansard – UK Parliament
2. NATO spending NATO – News: Defence Expenditure of NATO Countries (2014-2021), 11-Jun.-2021