Starmer cautions successor against defence borrowing, unveils £15bn investment plan

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday unveiled his long-awaited Defence Investment Plan (Dip), worth £15bn, funded by redirecting money from road and energy schemes. He stopped short of denying reports that some funds came from postponing upgrades to military housing. Starmer urged his likely successor, Labour MP Andy Burnham, to find additional defence funding in the next spending review but warned against borrowing. He dismissed the idea of "defence bonds," calling it borrowing by another name that would push up interest rates. The plan includes over £8bn for a new stealth fighter jet, £63bn for nuclear weapons systems including 12 new jets, and £5bn for drones. The Ministry of Defence had requested £28bn beyond existing allocations. Starmer admitted that capital projects in other departments, such as roads and energy, may be delayed or scrapped. Military chiefs have complained the extra funding falls short of needs. Starmer intends to announce the plan before the NATO summit in Ankara and before stepping down as PM. Burnham is expected to become Labour leader on 17 July and PM on 20 July.