|
|
|||
|
Defence & Security News - United Kingdom
|
|||
|
|
|||
| United Kingdom Defence Budget Could be Hit by £1bn (€1,4bn; $1,5bn) Cuts | |||
|
The British Ministry of Defence has been asked to find cuts of £1bn (€1,4bn; $1,5bn) to spending this year which analysts warned could lead the UK falling down on its commitment to NATO. As a member of the alliance, the UK is supposed to maintain defence spending at 2 per cent of GDP, although many other countries spend less than that.
|
|||
|
|
|||
 British Soldiers from The Royal Welsh scan the horizon for the incoming cuts (photo: UK MoD) |
|||
|
|
|||
|
The Treasury has asked ministries – apart from health, education and international development – to make savings totalling £3bn (€4,1bn; $4,5bn), including £1bn from Defence, The Times reported. A defence source told the paper: “The department is on budget so you would have to stop doing a lot of stuff.” The insider added that reducing spending by £1bn this year “would not be a thing you could just swallow and carry on”.
Malcolm Chalmers, of the Royal United Services Institute, warned defence cuts of that level would put the 2 per cent target at risk. “The UK might still be able to get to 1.951 per cent, which could be rounded to 2 per cent, if the economy grows more slowly than was forecast in the last budget and/or more use is made of the Treasury reserve for operational spending,” he said.
Defence analyst Paul Beaver, a defence analyst, said the MoD could delay delivery of F-35 fighter jets and other hardware, but this would not cover the required amount. “The only way to [save £1bn] is by stopping doing things. That is really, really difficult,” he said.
An MoD spokeswoman said the Government expected to meet the Nato spending target. “We are confident that we will spend 2 per cent of GDP on defence in this financial year. The prime minister has also made clear that there will be an annual 1 per cent real-terms increase in spending on defence equipment throughout this parliament,” she said.
In 2014, UK spent 2.07% of GDP in Defence. In 2015, Estonia should be the only Nato country to reach the 2 per cent goal. In 2016, Poland should also reach this percentage.
The British Army is already undergoing a 20% reduction in regular troop numbers, from 102,000 in 2010 to 82,000 in 2020.This is to be accompanied by a rise in the number of reservists, from 24,000 to 30,000.
The Royal Navy and the RAF are both preparing to lose 5,000 regulars and gain 500 reservists over the same period.
|
|||
