Published on 6/24/2026
The British newspaper The Telegraph reported that Andy Burnham, the candidate to lead the Labor Party and assume the presidency of the British government, told his allies that he plans to increase spending on defense beyond what was pledged by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently announced his resignation from office.
The newspaper said that Burnham, the former mayor of Greater Manchester, held meetings with Labor Party representatives in Parliament and told them that he would increase the funds allocated for investment in defense by more than the amount of 13.5 billion pounds sterling (about 17.76 billion dollars), according to Starmer’s plan.
Read also
list of 4 itemsend of list
The Telegraph explained that Burnham’s team discussed the defense budget with former Defense Secretary John Healey, who resigned from his position earlier this June in protest against Starmer not allocating enough money for defence, which “makes the country less safe,” as he described it.
The Telegraph, citing its sources, explained that Healey believes that Burnham’s proposals regarding strengthening the defense budget will be sufficient to enable Britain to confront Russian threats.
Disagreement with Starmer
In this context, the Financial Times explained that Starmer intends to move forward with presenting a defense investment plan for the next ten years before he leaves office, which raises a major disagreement with Burnham, who is expected to succeed him as prime minister.
The Financial Times said that Starmer insists on passing the army funding plan, which has been repeatedly postponed and has sparked widespread disagreements in his government, before the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) conference, which will be held in the Turkish capital, Ankara, on the seventh and eighth of next July.
The Financial Times quoted informed sources as saying that Burnham wants to review the defense investment plan himself, rather than agree to a proposal drawn up by Starmer, which could lead to a major political clash over the fate of this plan.
For her part, Treasury Secretary Rachel Reeves said before Parliament on Tuesday that she was “confident that the defense investment plan will be published before the NATO summit,” adding that it would include “larger and more effective spending.”
Reeves had approved an additional 13.5 billion pounds sterling for defense expenditures (about 17.76 billion dollars), which Haley rejected and resigned because of, as he demands that about 3% of the gross domestic product be allocated to finance and develop the army.
The Telegraph newspaper quoted its sources as saying that Burnham intends to appoint a new Minister of the Exchequer in his government team, and that he will offer Reeves a ministry with less weight than the Ministry of the Exchequer, which is of great importance in the British government.
Burnham’s allies believe, according to what the Telegraph reported, that Starmer does not have the right to approve the defense investment budget before leaving office due to its extreme importance, and he should leave the matter to the next prime minister without tying his hands to a pre-prepared plan.
