UK will have to ‘dial back’ military plans without more funding, says chief of defence
Rich Knighton tells Lords committee he is ‘most concerned’ about impact on day-to-day military activities
TL;DR
- Chief of Defence Staff Rich Knighton is 'most concerned' about day-to-day military activity budgets.
- A proposed increase in defense budgets to 2.68% of GDP by 2030 may necessitate cutbacks in operational activities and exercises.
- The split between resource spending and capital spending has shifted from 80/20 to approximately 60/40, with a projected 50/50 split by 2030.
- Key costs like aviation fuel have increased significantly.
- The former defence secretary resigned because the prime minister would not increase defense spending beyond an agreed target.
- Knighton emphasized the importance of the longer-term Nato target of spending 3.5% of national GDP on defence.