EXC: Armed forces minister Al Carns says the Defence Investment Plan is ‘not fit for purpose’ He says of Keir Starmer: ‘He’s got to sort this out’ It’s his first reaction to John Healey’s resignation over the DIP @TimesRadio

John Healey is an honourable man who has acted with integrity. But the dangers we face expose hard truths. The reported offer is £13.5bn over four years, against a £28bn gap just to sustain current plans & avoid cuts - never mind the rearmament the SDR outlines & we know is needed. Even the 2.5% figure Healey quotes relies on counting spending outside the core MOD budget as “defence”. This resignation shows what happens when political power drains from the centre & hard decisions cannot be made.

BREAKING: John Healey was offered only £10billion extra money for the Ministry of Defence, The Times has been told. He told the Prime Minister that a 0.08 per cent of GDP increase to defence would not keep the country safe. He only got the full offer on Monday afternoon - and Number 10 tried to rush and publish the DIP on Thursday, it is understood. Healey was clear that rushing through the plan was too risky for defence and personnel, as the plan needed to be properly finalised and was too important. The offer was £13.5billion - of which only £10 billion was real cash. Military chiefs said the rest was Treasury trickery - and "would not end hollowing out and would delay key transformation", it is understood

BREAKING: John Healey resigns

Back from holiday to read this brilliant piece which says the MoD will now only get 13.5 bn extra over the next four years. That's a big difference from the £18 bn that Jonathan Powell said was needed thetimes.com/article/d25b0ec…

The situation inside the MoD is so bad that Britain is second bottom in a Nato league table that ranks member states based on the extent to which they are meeting their rearmament promises. The UK is currently 31 out of 32 countries on a list — which may be published by the end of the month — detailing how each country is progressing in hitting the alliance’s capability requirements. The only country below the UK is understood to be Iceland, which does not have a military. thetimes.com/article/fe3f6c3…

This is from @DeutscheWelle Daily Berlin Briefing, a useful English language service on all things happening in German politics. Full article here: dw.com/en/german-asylum-bene…

Another good reason not to re-join the EU. Whatever one’s view is of immigration and asylum laws, it’s surely a national competence.

Watch in full: @KemiBadenoch's powerful response to the murder of Henry Nowak and the shocking police bodycam footage ⬇️

In a new column, @LiamHalligan dismisses “Project Fear” claims made before the 2016 referendum, saying that UK growth and exports have continued to expand since leaving the EU Read his full argument here ⤵️ telegraph.co.uk/business/202…

RIP Jeremy Hanley, local Richmond MP and inspiration for one of the great political lines after returning to parliament after the 1983 GE: “Mrs Thatcher, I want to thank you. I won by just 74 votes and without them I wouldn’t be here. I think your visit to the constituency made all the difference. You are responsible for those 74 votes.” “No Jeremy,” she replied gravely. “It is you who were responsible for the 74 votes. I was responsible for the 20,000.”

'This is very bad news for UK and NATO security.' Former Minister for Aviation, Maritime and Security Robert Courts reacts to reports RAF bases in Cyprus are under threat, saying this is a 'bad development for security in the West'.

Too many MPs still harbour the view that Brexit was an exercise in nostalgia, pushed on everyone by uninformed thickos. The truth is that it has delivered a major strategic advantage in the industries of the future - an advantage that Labour risks trading away. Today the Tech Secretary refused to rule out aligning us with the EU's AI Act and other tech laws as part of Labour's EU 'reset'. She knows our autonomy on tech is at risk, which is why someone in her ministerial team is briefing the @FT that Starmer's EU plans could 'smother' British innovation. Mario Draghi has warned the EU's approach to tech is killing Europe's competitiveness. Chancellor Merz wants looser rules for Germany. Over 40 EU companies are asking for a two-year stop clock on the AI Act. Labour thinks this is what a growth plan looks like.

We've updated our account. This is the official channel for the National Armaments Director Group, part of the UK Ministry of Defence. Follow us for the latest news and updates on how we’re enabling our warfighters to operate, deter, fight and win. 👊 🇬🇧

EXC: UK is preparing a multibillion-pound boost - expected to be around £6bn - for GCAP joint stealth jet project Japan’s defence minister Shinjirō Koizumi was unusually blunt about the issue in talks with Yvette Cooper during her recent visit to Japan, @FT told Japan is concerned that a planned visit to the UK by Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi next month is at risk of cancellation given the uncertainties around Starmer’s leadership, acc to official Jitters have been growing in Japan about UK’s commitment to GCAP, which this multi-year funding will aim to quell w/ @sylviapfeifer and @Urbandirt ft.com/content/7c9cfe0e-7ac9…

'This won't make any difference.' Former Conservative Solicitor General Robert Courts discusses calls for the ECHR to be altered to make it easier to deport foreign criminals. 📺 Freeview 236, Sky 512, Virgin 604 🇬🇧 Become a Friend of GB News: gbnews.com/support

Kemi Badenoch's latest net favourability rating of -17 is not just her highest to date, but is the highest recorded by YouGov of any Conservative leader since June 2021

Agree with the contents or not, this is outstanding from the Tories - explicitly setting out a swathe of laws they would repeal, and new laws they would pass, if in power. A clear determination to avoid Starmer's mistake of arriving in No. 10 without even the glimmer of a plan.

What wasn’t in the King’s Speech just now?

It's borderline treasonous that they just made His Majesty say the phrase "at pace"