Three former military chiefs accuse the Government of lacking urgency over defence spending, warning that delayed investment could leave Britain vulnerable as Moscow intensifies its campaign against European security.
Britain risks entering a dangerous period of heightened confrontation with Russia without the military capabilities needed to deter aggression, three former Army chiefs warned, as Labour faces mounting pressure to turn its defence spending promises into an immediate investment programme.
The criticism followed the Budget announcement that the Government intends to increase defence spending to 3 per cent of gross domestic product by 2030, with further funding details not expected until next year’s spending review.
For former military leaders, the gap between the ambition and the timetable is becoming a strategic liability. They argue that Britain cannot afford to delay decisions on equipment, personnel and military readiness while Russia continues its war against Ukraine and European governments confront growing security threats.
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General Lord Dannatt, who led the Army from 2006 to 2009, accused the Government of relying on what he described as “creative accounting” rather than committing the additional resources required.
“Russia is serious; we are not,” he told The Telegraph.
“Deterring aggression by being prepared for war is the best way to keep this country safe. Find the money now, don’t kick the can down the track for another year.”
Field Marshal Lord Richards, chief of the defence staff from 2010 to 2013, warned that Britain did not have the “luxury of time”. He urged ministers to “ruthlessly prioritise” defence requirements, pointing to warnings from the Government itself about the need to prepare for a possible conflict within the next 1,000 days.
General Sir Peter Wall, who served as Army chief from 2010 to 2014, said the investment required to rebuild the armed forces was “long overdue”.
“Three per cent by 2030 won’t deliver proper capability uplift much before 2035,” he warned, questioning how the money would be allocated and when it would reach the military.
“It’s an aspiration, not a commitment. The lack of strategic urgency is shocking and will only embolden our opponents.”
The dispute exposes a central tension in Britain’s defence policy: ministers have promised a substantial increase in spending, but the armed forces must make procurement and readiness decisions years before the money is fully allocated.
Chancellor John Healey said the Budget had plugged a £4.7bn shortfall in the long-delayed Defence Investment Plan, helping to put spending on course to reach 2.7 per cent of national income by 2027.
The Government has also committed to reaching 3 per cent by 2030 and the higher Nato target of 3.5 per cent by 2035. However, the detailed route to those targets is not expected until next autumn, leaving questions over the timing and distribution of future funding.
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, Labour chair of the House of Commons Defence Committee, criticised the absence of a clearer timetable, saying MPs across party lines had expected a “precise pathway” towards the spending commitments.
Key decisions had been “lamentably delayed”, he said, warning that “there is a cost to inaction”.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting rejected the criticism, describing it as “completely unfounded” and insisting the Government was doing as much as possible to strengthen the country’s defences.
Labour maintains that it is delivering the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the end of the Cold War. Streeting has also suggested that other areas of government spending may face constraints as ministers seek to direct more resources towards national security.
But the debate extends beyond the size of the defence budget. Security specialists argue that Europe must also adapt to a battlefield increasingly shaped by drones, cyber operations, sabotage and relatively inexpensive technologies capable of disrupting much more costly military systems.
Leopold Schmertzing, a strategic foresight and defence policy expert, argues that Russia’s campaign extends beyond conventional military operations, seeking to weaken European political institutions and critical infrastructure through sustained pressure.
He warned that individual incidents could appear limited while collectively eroding the continent’s security.
“My fear is that we will only fully wake up when our own capitals are attacked and our citizens are killed,” he said. “By then, it will be too late to prepare.”
European governments have increased defence investment since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, while the EU has identified air and missile defence, drones, counter-drone systems, cyber capabilities and intelligence as priority gaps.
Ukraine’s battlefield experience has also highlighted the changing economics of warfare. Relatively cheap drones can conduct surveillance, identify targets and attack infrastructure, forcing militaries to reconsider how they allocate resources between traditional weapons and emerging technologies.
Kateryna Mykhalko, managing director of the German-Ukrainian defence industry consortium New Age Defence, argues that European budgets have not fully reflected that shift.
“The technology delivering 80 per cent of battlefield results receives only roughly 2 per cent of European defence budgets,” she said.
For Britain, the challenge is to convert higher spending commitments into capabilities before the security environment deteriorates further. That means making decisions about equipment, industrial capacity, personnel and emerging technologies rather than relying on distant spending targets alone.
The former generals’ warnings do not establish that war with Russia is inevitable. They do, however, sharpen the question confronting ministers: whether Britain can strengthen deterrence quickly enough to reduce the risk of a conflict it says it wants to prevent.
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