Badenoch Issues Resignation Ultimatum to Starmer Over Defence Funding Shortfall
Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir Starmer to resign if his government’s long-delayed Defence Investment Plan fails to meet three core tests she laid out at a central London press conference on Monday, warning that Labour’s handling of national security amounts to a “major threat” to Britain.
The Resignation of John Healey
The confrontation follows the resignation last week of John Healey as Defence Secretary, who stepped down after concluding that the Defence Investment Plan (DIP) fell materially short of what military chiefs had requested. The plan allocated £13.5 billion in new spending — less than half the £28 billion over four years that officials said was required to modernise and future-proof Britain’s armed forces.
Badenoch did not soften her assessment of the episode. “What we saw last week was extraordinary — a Defence Secretary resigning because the Government is failing to keep us safe,” she told reporters.
Three Tests for the Defence Plan
The Conservative leader set out three conditions she says must be satisfied for the DIP to be credible:
“Any one of these three issues would be cause for concern,” Badenoch said. “Taken together, they are a major threat to our national security.”
An Offer of Conservative Votes on Welfare
In a notable tactical move, Badenoch offered to deliver Conservative parliamentary support for welfare cuts in order to fund increased defence spending — extending the offer to Starmer or to any successor should the Prime Minister face and lose an internal leadership challenge.
“That is why I am offering 115 Conservative votes in Parliament for welfare reforms — 116 if you count my name as well,” she said.
She was, however, explicit that the state pension triple lock should not be touched. “The triple lock is not where the issue is,” she said, pointing instead to the welfare budget as the appropriate source of savings. “If we get people off welfare and into work, it is a double whammy.”
A Government “In Office but Not in Power”
Badenoch also used the press conference to broaden her critique of Starmer’s leadership, accusing him of being “in office but not in power” and of squandering two years that could have been used to advance defence preparedness.
“We’ve been waiting for this Defence Investment Plan for two years,” she said. “We’re two years behind because Keir Starmer paused the plans that the Conservatives were putting in place when he came in.”
She added pointedly: “If the Labour Defence Secretary says it’s not enough and we’re not safe, then why should I disagree with him?”
Over the weekend, Badenoch wrote to Starmer’s internal rivals urging them to commit to higher defence spending than the Government has proposed — though she cautioned on Monday that “changing leader won’t solve the problem of those backbenchers” who remain opposed to the Government’s plans.