Two new army strike forces, 600 new Ajax armoured vehicles, two new RAF squadrons, 450 more Royal Navy personnel, a doubling of the RAF's drone fleet, new marine surveillance planes and a trebling of the firepower of the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers have all been announced today by the British Government, as it looks to repair the holes in Britain's armed forces.
David Cameron will today pledge to create two 5,000-strong strike brigades that can be rapidly deployed to war zones or to thwart terror attacks.
Backed up by 600 armoured vehicles, the units to be in place by 2025 are the centrepiece of the Prime Minister's long-awaited Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).
After five years of cuts including the army shrinking by a fifth, Mr Cameron will promise an extra £12billion for defence equipment by raiding the budgets for police, transport and welfare.
Mr Cameron will use a statement to MPs this afternoon to set out the results of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review for the next five years.
In the foreword to the review, the PM says that with the rise of Islamic State and tumult in the Middle East 'the world is more dangerous and uncertain today than five years ago'.
He will argue that the defence budget is now 'back in balance' and promise extra funding and equipment by 2020.
The purchase of fighter jets is to be speeded up. The Government had proposed to have only eight of the US-built F35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft available for deployment to the new carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales by 2023. That has been trebled to 24.
The only major disappointment for the Armed Forces is that there will be an initial order of just 8 Type 26 Global Combat Ships rather than the planned 13.
It's good to see that after several years of the British Armed Forces being decimated, the government is now committed to spending the coming years beefing them back up again.
Cameron pledges new 10,000-strong strike force to take on ISIS as MPs are told to act like Churchill not Chamberlain
Two 5,000-strong strike brigades will be rapidly deployed to war zones
Units are the centrepiece of PM's long-awaited defence and security review
He will announce £178bn of spending on defence equipment in next decade
Follows years of cuts that saw troop numbers fall from 102,000 to 82,000
See full coverage on David Cameron at www.dailymail.co.uk/pm
By Jack Slack and Daniel Martin for the Daily Mail and Matt Chorley for MailOnline
23 November 2015
Daily Mail
David Cameron will today pledge to create two 5,000-strong strike brigades that can be rapidly deployed to war zones or to thwart terror attacks.
Backed up by 600 armoured vehicles, the units to be in place by 2025 are the centrepiece of the Prime Minister's long-awaited Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).
After five years of cuts including the army shrinking by a fifth, Mr Cameron will promise an extra £12billion for defence equipment by raiding the budgets for police, transport and welfare.
Britain is to buy 42 new F35 Lightning stealth fighter jets as part of the Strategic Defence and Security unveiled today
Mr Cameron will use a statement to MPs this afternoon to set out the results of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review for the next five years.
In the foreword to the review, the PM says that with the rise of Islamic State and tumult in the Middle East 'the world is more dangerous and uncertain today than five years ago'.
He will argue that the defence budget is now 'back in balance' and promise extra funding and equipment by 2020. The government will announce:
£178billion of spending on defence equipment over the next decade, £12billion more than planned
Two new 'strike brigades' by 2025 to be rapidly deployed thousands of miles away if necessary
A new SCOUT range of vehicles, including almost 600 armoured vehicles, will be available to the strike brigades and other military units
9 new Boeing P8 maritime patrol aircraft to carry out surveillance at sea and help track submarines and ships, including protecting Britain's nuclear deterrent and aircraft carriers
42 new F35 Lightning stealth fighter jets, including 12 operating from each of the new aircraft carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales
At least one aircraft carrier to be able to deploy all year, with 24-hour air operations
Two additional Typhoon squadrons to be created by extending the life of the aircraft for 10 years through to 2040, creating seven in total with 12 aircraft each
Number of new Type 26 combat ships to be cut from 13 to around eight
Foreign aid budget to be refocused on fragile states which poise a direct threat to British security
Under pressure from Tory MPs, the government has committed to spend at least 2 per cent of GDP on defence.
Mr Cameron said: 'Our national security depends on our economic security, and vice versa. So the first step in our National Security Strategy is to ensure our economy is, and remains, strong.
'Over the last five years we have taken the difficult decisions needed to bring down our deficit and restore our economy to strength.
'In 2010, the total black hole in the defence budget alone was bigger than the entire defence budget in that year. Now it is back in balance.
'By sticking to our long-term economic plan, Britain has become the fastest growing major advanced economy in the world for the last two years. Our renewed economic security means we can afford to invest further in our national security.
'This is vital at a time when the threats to our country are growing. From the rise of ISIL and greater instability in the Middle East, to the crisis in Ukraine, the threat of cyber attacks and the risk of pandemics, the world is more dangerous and uncertain today than five years ago.
'So while every government must choose how to spend the money it has available, every penny of which is hard-earned by taxpayers, this Government has taken a clear decision to invest in our security and safeguard our prosperity.'
David Cameron will today pledge to create two 5,000-strong strike brigades that can be rapidly deployed to war zones
Britain will buy 9 new Boeing P8 maritime patrol aircraft from the US to carry out surveillance at sea and help track submarines and ships, including protecting Britain's nuclear deterrent and aircraft carriers
The British Army is to get 600 Ajax armoured vehicles
Increased air cover will mean that one of the new aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, will be able to deploy all year with 24-hour air operations
The number of new Type 26 combat ships to be ordered is expected to fall from 13 to around eight
The Royal Navy is to have an extra 450 personnel
The two strike brigades included in the defence and security review will be 'rapidly deployable' by 2025, Whitehall officials said. They will be able to operate thousands of miles away and, if needed, split into smaller units to deal with threats to Britons abroad, or to enter war zones.
The brigades will be drawn from existing troop numbers, rather than recruitment.
Mr Cameron will promise funding for nine new Boeing P8 patrol aircraft. The planes can be used for maritime surveillance, with military chiefs arguing they have a vital role to play in protecting the Trident nuclear deterrent from enemy attack.
Armed with torpedoes, they can strike against submarines as well as ships, and will also be used to protect the country's new aircraft carriers.
The Government is extending the life of its Typhoon fighter jets for ten extra years to 2040, creating two extra squadrons.
The purchase of fighter jets is to be speeded up. The Government had proposed to have only eight of the US-built F35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft available for deployment to the new carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales by 2023. That has been trebled to 24.
The strategy is published amid a further intensification of the Government's efforts to secure the Commons votes it needs to launch bombing raids against IS in Syria.
The number of armed forces personnel has fallen markedly in recent years as ministers tried to plug a black hole in the defence budget
It is believed the Prime Minister will tell wavering MPs this week that Britain must start acting like 'Churchill not Chamberlain' if it is to defeat terrorism.
Chancellor George Osborne also publicly made the case for RAF strikes, saying that Western nations were now seeing 'the price of not getting involved' in Syria after MPs voted against action two years ago.
He claimed the UK should be shaping the world rather than being shaped by it and warned that a Commons vote against strikes would be a propaganda coup for the jihadists.
Mr Cameron is due to publish on Thursday his case for RAF attacks on IS in Syria. If sufficient Labour MPs can be persuaded to vote with the Government to compensate for an expected 15 Tory rebels, bombing could begin by Christmas.
The reference to Winston Churchill, and his predecessor Neville Chamberlain, effectively compares opposition to action against Islamic State to Mr Chamberlain's appeasement of Adolf Hitler at Munich.
Labour's John McDonnell said the situation in Syria was very different to the Second World War 'where you fight against an enemy on one terrain, you defeat them, they sign a peace treaty and that's it'.
The Shadow Chancellor indicated, however, that the anti-war Labour leadership was planning a U-turn to allow their MPs a free vote on extending airstrikes to Syria.
Left-wing Labour MP Paul Flynn tweeted: 'Government should not ape Chamberlain or Churchill. Harold Wilson is best. He stood for an independent UK policy and kept us out of Vietnam.' The most senior civil servant under Margaret Thatcher said yesterday that she would have demanded assurances that any action against Syria was legally justifiable on self-defence grounds.
Lord Butler, the former Cabinet Secretary, told Sky News: 'You have to be satisfied that it's an imminent threat to the UK.'
Last night a Downing Street spokesman said he did not recognise the Churchill versus Chamberlain line.
Read more: David Cameron pledges 10,000 strong anti-terrorism Army strike force | Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
David Cameron is repairing the holes in Britain's defences
The SDSR will send a clear signal that Britain is serious about protecing its interests and making the world safer
The SDSR must provide a budget adequate to forge Armed Forces adaptable and equipped to face not just what is in front of us now, but also those unexpected things that are certain to come Photo: Marco Di Lauro/Getty Images
By Con Coughlin
23 Nov 2015
The Telegraph
45 Comments
The Government’s announcement that it is to spend £178 billion on re-equipping the Armed Forces with new kit is an important first step towards rebuilding Britain’s military credibility.
After the disastrous cuts that followed the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), which resulted in vital capabilities such our aircraft carrier strike capability being scrapped, David Cameron’s announcement in the Telegraph that he is committing billions of pounds in extra funding to defence demonstrates the Government is determined to ensure the Armed Forces have the resources they need to defend the realm against all threats.
Nearly all the announcements made so far relate to restoring important capability gaps that were created by the last SDSR, particularly the dramatic reduction in the number of Britain’s combat air squadrons.
In an age when the first reaction of politicians of all persuasions to a security threat is to authorise bombing raids it is vital that Britain has sufficient numbers of combat aircraft and drones to fulfil such missions.
Thus the decision to give the RAF an extra two squadrons of Typhoon Eurofighters, as well as purchasing sufficient numbers of the new F-35B Joint Strike Fighter for the Navy’s new Queen Elizabeth Class carriers to make them credible, means that, by the start of the next decade, Britain should have sufficient air combat power for its needs.
Similarly the decision to acquire nine Boeing maritime patrol aircraft will mean that Britain is able to defend its coastline against unwelcome intruders, such as Russian attack submarines.
One of the more controversial measures of the last SDSR was to scrap the RAF’s fleet of Nimrod patrol aircraft, which meant that the military was unable to provide effective cover for our submarine fleet – including the boats carrying the nation’s vital Trident nuclear deterrent. On several occasions in recent year this has meant Whitehall having to ask allies such as France to provide the cover on our behalf.
At a time when the Government is preparing to spend an estimated £100 billion on building a replacement nuclear deterrent system, it is vital that we have the means to afford it proper protection, a role the new Boeing aircraft are specifically designed to fulfil.
Plans to spend more on doubling the current fleet of drones, as well as expanding the role of our Special Forces, shows the Government wants as much flexibility as possible when it comes to dealing with future threats, whether it is Islamist militants in the Middle East or Russian territorial ambitions in Europe.
Arguably the biggest casualty of this SDSR is the Navy’s proposal for a fleet of new Type 26 destroyers, which many critics in Whitehall says are far too expensive in the current austerity climate. The Navy may well have to think about devising a cheaper and more cost effective alternative.
The other issue of concern remains staffing levels. Mr Cameron has made much of announcing the Army is to have two new combat strike battalions, when in fact these have already been set up as part of the Army’s reorganisation following the last SDSR. The Navy and RAF also have a real shortage of qualified personnel to operate their planes and ships. There is little point investing billions of pounds in new kit if you do not have the manpower available to operate them.
But overall the Government deserves credit for repairing the glaring holes that had arisen in our national defences. At the very least it will send a clear signal to our enemies and allies alike that Britain is serious about protecting its interests and fulfilling its international obligations to make the world a safe place.
David Cameron pledges 10,000 strong anti-terrorism Army strike force | Daily Mail Online
David Cameron will today pledge to create two 5,000-strong strike brigades that can be rapidly deployed to war zones or to thwart terror attacks.
Backed up by 600 armoured vehicles, the units to be in place by 2025 are the centrepiece of the Prime Minister's long-awaited Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).
After five years of cuts including the army shrinking by a fifth, Mr Cameron will promise an extra £12billion for defence equipment by raiding the budgets for police, transport and welfare.
Mr Cameron will use a statement to MPs this afternoon to set out the results of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review for the next five years.
In the foreword to the review, the PM says that with the rise of Islamic State and tumult in the Middle East 'the world is more dangerous and uncertain today than five years ago'.
He will argue that the defence budget is now 'back in balance' and promise extra funding and equipment by 2020.
The purchase of fighter jets is to be speeded up. The Government had proposed to have only eight of the US-built F35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft available for deployment to the new carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales by 2023. That has been trebled to 24.
The only major disappointment for the Armed Forces is that there will be an initial order of just 8 Type 26 Global Combat Ships rather than the planned 13.
It's good to see that after several years of the British Armed Forces being decimated, the government is now committed to spending the coming years beefing them back up again.
Cameron pledges new 10,000-strong strike force to take on ISIS as MPs are told to act like Churchill not Chamberlain
Two 5,000-strong strike brigades will be rapidly deployed to war zones
Units are the centrepiece of PM's long-awaited defence and security review
He will announce £178bn of spending on defence equipment in next decade
Follows years of cuts that saw troop numbers fall from 102,000 to 82,000
See full coverage on David Cameron at www.dailymail.co.uk/pm
By Jack Slack and Daniel Martin for the Daily Mail and Matt Chorley for MailOnline
23 November 2015
Daily Mail
David Cameron will today pledge to create two 5,000-strong strike brigades that can be rapidly deployed to war zones or to thwart terror attacks.
Backed up by 600 armoured vehicles, the units to be in place by 2025 are the centrepiece of the Prime Minister's long-awaited Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).
After five years of cuts including the army shrinking by a fifth, Mr Cameron will promise an extra £12billion for defence equipment by raiding the budgets for police, transport and welfare.
Britain is to buy 42 new F35 Lightning stealth fighter jets as part of the Strategic Defence and Security unveiled today
Mr Cameron will use a statement to MPs this afternoon to set out the results of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review for the next five years.
In the foreword to the review, the PM says that with the rise of Islamic State and tumult in the Middle East 'the world is more dangerous and uncertain today than five years ago'.
He will argue that the defence budget is now 'back in balance' and promise extra funding and equipment by 2020. The government will announce:
£178billion of spending on defence equipment over the next decade, £12billion more than planned
Two new 'strike brigades' by 2025 to be rapidly deployed thousands of miles away if necessary
A new SCOUT range of vehicles, including almost 600 armoured vehicles, will be available to the strike brigades and other military units
9 new Boeing P8 maritime patrol aircraft to carry out surveillance at sea and help track submarines and ships, including protecting Britain's nuclear deterrent and aircraft carriers
42 new F35 Lightning stealth fighter jets, including 12 operating from each of the new aircraft carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales
At least one aircraft carrier to be able to deploy all year, with 24-hour air operations
Two additional Typhoon squadrons to be created by extending the life of the aircraft for 10 years through to 2040, creating seven in total with 12 aircraft each
Number of new Type 26 combat ships to be cut from 13 to around eight
Foreign aid budget to be refocused on fragile states which poise a direct threat to British security
Under pressure from Tory MPs, the government has committed to spend at least 2 per cent of GDP on defence.
Mr Cameron said: 'Our national security depends on our economic security, and vice versa. So the first step in our National Security Strategy is to ensure our economy is, and remains, strong.
'Over the last five years we have taken the difficult decisions needed to bring down our deficit and restore our economy to strength.
'In 2010, the total black hole in the defence budget alone was bigger than the entire defence budget in that year. Now it is back in balance.
'By sticking to our long-term economic plan, Britain has become the fastest growing major advanced economy in the world for the last two years. Our renewed economic security means we can afford to invest further in our national security.
'This is vital at a time when the threats to our country are growing. From the rise of ISIL and greater instability in the Middle East, to the crisis in Ukraine, the threat of cyber attacks and the risk of pandemics, the world is more dangerous and uncertain today than five years ago.
'So while every government must choose how to spend the money it has available, every penny of which is hard-earned by taxpayers, this Government has taken a clear decision to invest in our security and safeguard our prosperity.'
David Cameron will today pledge to create two 5,000-strong strike brigades that can be rapidly deployed to war zones
Britain will buy 9 new Boeing P8 maritime patrol aircraft from the US to carry out surveillance at sea and help track submarines and ships, including protecting Britain's nuclear deterrent and aircraft carriers
The British Army is to get 600 Ajax armoured vehicles
Increased air cover will mean that one of the new aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, will be able to deploy all year with 24-hour air operations
The number of new Type 26 combat ships to be ordered is expected to fall from 13 to around eight
The Royal Navy is to have an extra 450 personnel
The two strike brigades included in the defence and security review will be 'rapidly deployable' by 2025, Whitehall officials said. They will be able to operate thousands of miles away and, if needed, split into smaller units to deal with threats to Britons abroad, or to enter war zones.
The brigades will be drawn from existing troop numbers, rather than recruitment.
Mr Cameron will promise funding for nine new Boeing P8 patrol aircraft. The planes can be used for maritime surveillance, with military chiefs arguing they have a vital role to play in protecting the Trident nuclear deterrent from enemy attack.
Armed with torpedoes, they can strike against submarines as well as ships, and will also be used to protect the country's new aircraft carriers.
The Government is extending the life of its Typhoon fighter jets for ten extra years to 2040, creating two extra squadrons.
The purchase of fighter jets is to be speeded up. The Government had proposed to have only eight of the US-built F35 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft available for deployment to the new carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales by 2023. That has been trebled to 24.
The strategy is published amid a further intensification of the Government's efforts to secure the Commons votes it needs to launch bombing raids against IS in Syria.
The number of armed forces personnel has fallen markedly in recent years as ministers tried to plug a black hole in the defence budget
It is believed the Prime Minister will tell wavering MPs this week that Britain must start acting like 'Churchill not Chamberlain' if it is to defeat terrorism.
Chancellor George Osborne also publicly made the case for RAF strikes, saying that Western nations were now seeing 'the price of not getting involved' in Syria after MPs voted against action two years ago.
He claimed the UK should be shaping the world rather than being shaped by it and warned that a Commons vote against strikes would be a propaganda coup for the jihadists.
Mr Cameron is due to publish on Thursday his case for RAF attacks on IS in Syria. If sufficient Labour MPs can be persuaded to vote with the Government to compensate for an expected 15 Tory rebels, bombing could begin by Christmas.
The reference to Winston Churchill, and his predecessor Neville Chamberlain, effectively compares opposition to action against Islamic State to Mr Chamberlain's appeasement of Adolf Hitler at Munich.
Labour's John McDonnell said the situation in Syria was very different to the Second World War 'where you fight against an enemy on one terrain, you defeat them, they sign a peace treaty and that's it'.
The Shadow Chancellor indicated, however, that the anti-war Labour leadership was planning a U-turn to allow their MPs a free vote on extending airstrikes to Syria.
Left-wing Labour MP Paul Flynn tweeted: 'Government should not ape Chamberlain or Churchill. Harold Wilson is best. He stood for an independent UK policy and kept us out of Vietnam.' The most senior civil servant under Margaret Thatcher said yesterday that she would have demanded assurances that any action against Syria was legally justifiable on self-defence grounds.
Lord Butler, the former Cabinet Secretary, told Sky News: 'You have to be satisfied that it's an imminent threat to the UK.'
Last night a Downing Street spokesman said he did not recognise the Churchill versus Chamberlain line.
Read more: David Cameron pledges 10,000 strong anti-terrorism Army strike force | Daily Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
David Cameron is repairing the holes in Britain's defences
The SDSR will send a clear signal that Britain is serious about protecing its interests and making the world safer
The SDSR must provide a budget adequate to forge Armed Forces adaptable and equipped to face not just what is in front of us now, but also those unexpected things that are certain to come Photo: Marco Di Lauro/Getty Images
By Con Coughlin
23 Nov 2015
The Telegraph
The Government’s announcement that it is to spend £178 billion on re-equipping the Armed Forces with new kit is an important first step towards rebuilding Britain’s military credibility.
After the disastrous cuts that followed the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR), which resulted in vital capabilities such our aircraft carrier strike capability being scrapped, David Cameron’s announcement in the Telegraph that he is committing billions of pounds in extra funding to defence demonstrates the Government is determined to ensure the Armed Forces have the resources they need to defend the realm against all threats.
Nearly all the announcements made so far relate to restoring important capability gaps that were created by the last SDSR, particularly the dramatic reduction in the number of Britain’s combat air squadrons.
In an age when the first reaction of politicians of all persuasions to a security threat is to authorise bombing raids it is vital that Britain has sufficient numbers of combat aircraft and drones to fulfil such missions.
Thus the decision to give the RAF an extra two squadrons of Typhoon Eurofighters, as well as purchasing sufficient numbers of the new F-35B Joint Strike Fighter for the Navy’s new Queen Elizabeth Class carriers to make them credible, means that, by the start of the next decade, Britain should have sufficient air combat power for its needs.
Similarly the decision to acquire nine Boeing maritime patrol aircraft will mean that Britain is able to defend its coastline against unwelcome intruders, such as Russian attack submarines.
One of the more controversial measures of the last SDSR was to scrap the RAF’s fleet of Nimrod patrol aircraft, which meant that the military was unable to provide effective cover for our submarine fleet – including the boats carrying the nation’s vital Trident nuclear deterrent. On several occasions in recent year this has meant Whitehall having to ask allies such as France to provide the cover on our behalf.
At a time when the Government is preparing to spend an estimated £100 billion on building a replacement nuclear deterrent system, it is vital that we have the means to afford it proper protection, a role the new Boeing aircraft are specifically designed to fulfil.
Plans to spend more on doubling the current fleet of drones, as well as expanding the role of our Special Forces, shows the Government wants as much flexibility as possible when it comes to dealing with future threats, whether it is Islamist militants in the Middle East or Russian territorial ambitions in Europe.
Arguably the biggest casualty of this SDSR is the Navy’s proposal for a fleet of new Type 26 destroyers, which many critics in Whitehall says are far too expensive in the current austerity climate. The Navy may well have to think about devising a cheaper and more cost effective alternative.
The other issue of concern remains staffing levels. Mr Cameron has made much of announcing the Army is to have two new combat strike battalions, when in fact these have already been set up as part of the Army’s reorganisation following the last SDSR. The Navy and RAF also have a real shortage of qualified personnel to operate their planes and ships. There is little point investing billions of pounds in new kit if you do not have the manpower available to operate them.
But overall the Government deserves credit for repairing the glaring holes that had arisen in our national defences. At the very least it will send a clear signal to our enemies and allies alike that Britain is serious about protecting its interests and fulfilling its international obligations to make the world a safe place.
David Cameron pledges 10,000 strong anti-terrorism Army strike force | Daily Mail Online
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