UK Defence Secretary resigns

2026-06-11 13:42:52Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

British Defense Minister John Healey resigned on Thursday over a disagreement over military spending, accusing Prime Minister Keir Starmer of failing to commit the government resources needed to defend the country.

Britain's defense and finance ministries have been locked in talks for months over how to meet growing demands to expand military spending, delaying Britain's Defense Investment Plan since last year.

In his resignation letter, Healey tells Starmer that he and the Treasury have been unwilling to commit the resources the nation needs to defend the country at this time of growing threats.

“This new era for defence required further investment through the Defence Investment Plan. The excellent and extensive cross-government work that concluded in January — overseen by you, me and the Chancellor of the Exchequer — confirmed the scale of the challenge and the growing risks to defence. Since then, you have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources the nation needs to defend the country at this time of growing threats.

Since then, the demands on defence have increased further, as have the UK’s commitments to allies, which you have rightly undertaken. The conflict in the Middle East, with the UK now leading the multinational mission in the Strait of Hormuz; security in the High North, with the UK now leading the NATO mission in the Arctic; increased Russian activity against the UK and NATO countries and increased attacks in Ukraine, and the Paris Agreement confirming a British deployment in Ukraine following a ceasefire,” his letter to Starmer reads.


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