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| Military chiefs call for reversal of defence cuts | Military chiefs call for reversal of defence cuts |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| Three military experts have warned that the UK's military defences have been imperilled by "swingeing cuts" that must be reversed if the armed forces are to protect British interests and meet their commitments for the rest of the decade. | |
| With the army due to announce another round of redundancies this month, the intervention of such senior figures will put renewed focus on reductions in manpower and capabilities that have worried the US. | |
| In an interview with the Guardian last week, the US ambassador to Nato, Ivo Daalder, said the UK and the rest of Europe had to reinvest the money saved from the Afghanistan withdrawal into re-equipping their militaries. | In an interview with the Guardian last week, the US ambassador to Nato, Ivo Daalder, said the UK and the rest of Europe had to reinvest the money saved from the Afghanistan withdrawal into re-equipping their militaries. |
| The fresh warning comes from Admiral Lord West, the former first Sea Lord; General Sir Michael Rose, Commander of the UN Protection Force in Bosnia; and Air Chief Marshall Sir Michael Graydon, a former chief of the air staff. | The fresh warning comes from Admiral Lord West, the former first Sea Lord; General Sir Michael Rose, Commander of the UN Protection Force in Bosnia; and Air Chief Marshall Sir Michael Graydon, a former chief of the air staff. |
| In a report for the UK National Defence Association (UKNDA), they say defence spending cuts have left the navy with too few ships and submarines, describe plans to increase the size of the army reserves as "simply unachievable", and blame problems in the air force on lack of personnel and "the unserviceability of ancient equipment". | In a report for the UK National Defence Association (UKNDA), they say defence spending cuts have left the navy with too few ships and submarines, describe plans to increase the size of the army reserves as "simply unachievable", and blame problems in the air force on lack of personnel and "the unserviceability of ancient equipment". |
| The former security minister Lord West said he was in "no doubt … the Royal Navy is too small to meet all the commitments expected of it", and urged the government to state that spending on the Trident replacement submarines will not have to come out of the over-stretched Ministry of Defence budget. "So far, alas, the Chancellor and Treasury remain obdurate," he said. | |
| West said the fleet of seven new Astute-class attack submarines was too small and had, in any event, "encountered numerous difficulties". | West said the fleet of seven new Astute-class attack submarines was too small and had, in any event, "encountered numerous difficulties". |
| "Underlying everything is a story of insufficient hulls and lack of investment in key areas … Manpower is stretched exceedingly thin and I would describe the situation as fragile. The naval service is therefore far from being as robust as the nation has a right to expect." | "Underlying everything is a story of insufficient hulls and lack of investment in key areas … Manpower is stretched exceedingly thin and I would describe the situation as fragile. The naval service is therefore far from being as robust as the nation has a right to expect." |
| He called on the government to increase defence spending to 3% of GDP – currently it hovers at about 2%. | He called on the government to increase defence spending to 3% of GDP – currently it hovers at about 2%. |
| "Indeed, unless there is a conscious decision to increase the percentage of GDP spent on defence to 3% and properly fund the RN/naval service, I consider we will live to regret it. In the final analysis it is vital to the survival and wealth of our nation and people." | "Indeed, unless there is a conscious decision to increase the percentage of GDP spent on defence to 3% and properly fund the RN/naval service, I consider we will live to regret it. In the final analysis it is vital to the survival and wealth of our nation and people." |
| In an equally brutal critique, General Rose said: "The British army has already lost one war in Iraq, and although the outcome of the war in Afghanistan is unknown … it is unlikely to have won this war either by 2014." | In an equally brutal critique, General Rose said: "The British army has already lost one war in Iraq, and although the outcome of the war in Afghanistan is unknown … it is unlikely to have won this war either by 2014." |
| He said the reduction by one-fifth of the army to 82,000 personnel was underpinned by "a critical assumption" that the reserves can almost double in strength over the next few years. | He said the reduction by one-fifth of the army to 82,000 personnel was underpinned by "a critical assumption" that the reserves can almost double in strength over the next few years. |
| "If it cannot, then this is likely to prove fatal to the army's 2020s strategic viability," he said. | "If it cannot, then this is likely to prove fatal to the army's 2020s strategic viability," he said. |
| "Given the past run-down of the TA, including the closure of TA centres, the reduction in man training days and lack of funding for recruiting campaigns, it is clearly not possible to increase the trained manpower in the reserves in time to compensate for regular soldiers being made redundant." | "Given the past run-down of the TA, including the closure of TA centres, the reduction in man training days and lack of funding for recruiting campaigns, it is clearly not possible to increase the trained manpower in the reserves in time to compensate for regular soldiers being made redundant." |
| Graydon said the cuts to the RAF had put at risk its "ability to operate alongside the US air force in anything other than a token capacity". | Graydon said the cuts to the RAF had put at risk its "ability to operate alongside the US air force in anything other than a token capacity". |
| "Mass matters, and all the armed forces, the Royal Navy and RAF in particular, will have to find a better balance between the demands of high-tech warfare and the simple fact that quantity has a quality of its own. It will require an honest recognition that without the United States we are severely restricted in what we can actually achieve." | "Mass matters, and all the armed forces, the Royal Navy and RAF in particular, will have to find a better balance between the demands of high-tech warfare and the simple fact that quantity has a quality of its own. It will require an honest recognition that without the United States we are severely restricted in what we can actually achieve." |
| John Muxworthy, the chief executive of UKNDA, said defence had been the cinderella of the public services over the past 20 years. "Whilst the share of public expenditure devoted to health and welfare has skyrocketed, the proportion granted to defence has shrunk. Defence has for far too long been a sacrificial lamb. The security of the United Kingdom is being severely compromised by the continued swingeing cuts to our armed forces." | John Muxworthy, the chief executive of UKNDA, said defence had been the cinderella of the public services over the past 20 years. "Whilst the share of public expenditure devoted to health and welfare has skyrocketed, the proportion granted to defence has shrunk. Defence has for far too long been a sacrificial lamb. The security of the United Kingdom is being severely compromised by the continued swingeing cuts to our armed forces." |
| The government has defended the cuts, pointing out that the UK still has the fourth biggest defence budget in the world. Philip Hammond, the defence secretary, has made balancing the books his priority in a department where profligacy and inefficiency were rife. | The government has defended the cuts, pointing out that the UK still has the fourth biggest defence budget in the world. Philip Hammond, the defence secretary, has made balancing the books his priority in a department where profligacy and inefficiency were rife. |
| The chiefs of the three services have already committed to reforming and reequipping the armed forces with the money currently available – but only if there are no further cuts. | The chiefs of the three services have already committed to reforming and reequipping the armed forces with the money currently available – but only if there are no further cuts. |