Britain’s prime minister-in-waiting Andy Burnham has pledged to strengthen the country’s armed forces and defence industry, arguing that an increasingly volatile global security environment demands a renewed focus on “hard power” and greater self-reliance in military production.Expected to succeed Keir Starmer as prime minister on July 20 after becoming the sole candidate in the Labour leadership race, Burnham said defence investment should also serve as an engine for reindustrialising struggling parts of Britain instead of relying heavily on imported military equipment.
‘Hard power’ for a changing world
Writing in The Times, Burnham said Britain’s armed forces needed to be modernised for a new era marked by escalating geopolitical tensions.“It is right that we rebuild our hard power for a new era that is very different to the one in which much of our current military equipment was first designed,” he wrote.Burnham pointed to recent global developments—including the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran, Russia’s continuing war in Ukraine, and last year’s cyberattack on Jaguar Land Rover, which he said cost the UK economy nearly £2 billion—as evidence that Britain must strengthen its defence capabilities.He also called for greater transparency in defence spending and reduced dependence on foreign suppliers, saying a stronger domestic defence industry was “critical” to both national and economic security.
Defence spending push gathers pace
Burnham’s remarks come as Britain’s new Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis publicly requested the incoming prime minister to significantly increase military spending and set out a clear roadmap towards Nato’s target of allocating 3.5 per cent of GDP to defence.Speaking ahead of the Nato summit in Ankara, Jarvis said the next spending review should “evidence the trajectory” towards the alliance’s benchmark, a move that would add nearly £25 billion annually to Britain’s defence budget by the middle of the next decade.“The world is absolutely more dangerous and more complicated than at any point during my lifetime,” said Jarvis, a former paratrooper, as he highlighted mounting threats ranging from Russia’s military activity to cyber warfare.Jarvis said he had already begun discussions with Burnham and his team on defence priorities, including the government’s recently unveiled £298-billion four-year Defence Investment Plan.“I’ve known Andy for a very long time and I have not a shred of doubt that as prime minister he will make sure that we’ve got the resources that we need at a point of challenge,” he said.
Closer Europe ties, continuity on security
While Burnham has limited experience in foreign policy, having spent nearly a decade as mayor of Greater Manchester before returning to Parliament, he outlined plans to strengthen defence and security cooperation with European partners, particularly France and Germany.He also pledged to accelerate negotiations with the European Union on issues such as tackling illegal migration and confirmed that Jonathan Powell would continue as national security adviser, signalling continuity in Britain’s security establishment.Britain is also preparing for one of its most significant overseas military deployments in recent years to help safeguard the Strait of Hormuz in coordination with France if a lasting peace agreement emerges between the US and Iran.Jarvis is expected to use the Nato summit to reassure US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth that Britain remains committed to meeting the alliance’s defence spending commitments.
