Last week the political world was stunned by the resignation of John Healey as Defence Secretary, followed by his junior minister Al Carns. John Healey is a long-serving, loyal and principled Minister, highly regarded by MPs and journalists alike.
The Government has committed to increasing spending on defence from £66 billion (or 2.3% of national income in 2024-25), to 3.5% by 2035. According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, this means they need to find an extra £36 billion per year.
Plans to achieve this were due to be set out in the upcoming Defence Investment Plan, but Mr Healey resigned because the settlement in his words “falls well short of what is required … at this dangerous time”.
He left with the scathing judgement that the Prime Minister has “been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats.”
This resignation may well cut the final thread on which Keir Starmer’s premiership is hanging. But it is also a stark reminder of the challenges facing our nation today.
Since the end of the Cold War, the UK – and perhaps Europe as a whole – has become complacent about our defences.
Our standing army currently consists of just 73,000 permanent soldiers, and our naval fleet is mostly in port, either for maintenance or decommissioning. The defence budget has become more focused on military equipment than personnel, reflecting changes in technology, but we have a long way to go in adapting to modern warfare.
According to The Times, the Ukrainian army is using 200,000 drones a month against Russia, whilst Britain currently has a total drone capacity of 8,000.
The world is getting more dangerous, and the PM has warned that Putin could invade a Nato country by 2030. In such a case, Britain would have an obligation to provide military assistance. The growing Russian threat extends to the possibility of long range missile strikes, but security incursions are also ongoing. We have seen this emphasised this week by the interception of a Russian shadow fleet vessel in the Channel and news that the Russian state was behind the recent arson attack on Keir Starmer’s home.
There are three options available to governments for increasing defence spending. They can increase taxes, cut spending elsewhere, or borrow more money.
None of these are easy options. In each case there will be trade-offs. The government has been – apparently unsuccessfully – seeking to salami-slice other department’s already-squeezed budgets.
Opposition parties have different approaches. The Conservatives would divert funding from green energy projects; Reform would cut welfare and foreign aid; the Lib Dems would introduce Defence Bonds in which ordinary people could invest.
How should Christians think and pray about these issues? There are legitimate Christian arguments for pacifism and even unilateral disarmament, but it is also true that one of a government’s main functions is to keep its people safe. Romans 13 sets out that the authorities are instituted by God to keep order.
But Christian views of war and defence all agree that nations should pursue justice, tempered with mercy; and that war should be avoided until all avenues for a just peace are exhausted. International relations should be concerned with building trust, peace and security through respectful relationships and co-operation.
So amidst the current political turmoil, let’s pray for our government, and for wise decision-making. And let’s remember Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:6: “You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed.”
War and uncertainty are part of our fallen world. But we know how God’s story ends. The great Biblical empires of Babylon and Rome were ultimately reduced to rubble and ruin, and the same will be true of the powers that threaten the world today, all of them. God promises to bring in his eternal kingdom and restore all creation under Christ’s rule. This should give us immense hope for the future, where there will be no longer be any wars, enmity or death.
Let’s pray today for Christ’s peace on our broken and destructive world, and for his return. Let’s hold onto his promise in John 14:27: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid.”
Tim Farron has been the Member of Parliament for Westmorland and Lonsdale since 2005 and served as the Leader of the Liberal Democrat Party from 2015 to 2017. Tim is also the host of Premier’s ‘A Mucky Business’ podcast, which unpacks the murky world of politics and encourages believers around the UK to engage prayerfully. He is the author of A Mucky Business: Why Christians should get involved in politics.”
