New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has not committed to increasing defence spending to 3 percent of GDP by 2030.
New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s reluctance to commit to a three percent of GDP defense spending target by 2030 has raised national security concerns. PULSE POINTS WHAT HAPPENED: New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has refused to commit to increasing defense spending to three percent of GDP by 2030. DETAIL: On Wednesday, Prime Minister Burnham failed to provide a commitment to increase defense spending to three percent of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) by 2030. Instead, Prime Minister Burnham pledged to increase Britain’s “core defense” budget to 3.5 percent of GDP by 2035—by which point he will be entering his late sixties and likely out of office. Core defense refers to fundamental military capabilities and…Open
Leaks reveal failed journalist Paul Mason secretly advised ex-Prime Minister Keir Starmer, his Defence Secretary and now-Chancellor John Healey, and top aides on important security matters.
Mason’s belligerent pronouncements on the need for Britain to “deter” Russia through a massive military build-up influenced Labour’s policies and rhetoric. This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Mason was secretly working with notorious British military intelligence operative Chris Donnelly to turn Labour toward a hardline position on Russia and defense spending. Since the Ukraine proxy war erupted, Donnelly has secretly guided London on escalation strategies, including attacks on Kerch Bridge, and the creation of Gladio-style terrorist armies in Ukraine. All along, he and Mason have fed lines to Healey and other Labour frontbenchers on the conflict,…Open
The new prime minister has little room to maneuver on the UK’s brewing fiscal crisis. The post Back to the ’70s in Burnham’s Britain? appeared first on The American Conservative .
UK Special Coverage Back to the ’70s in Burnham’s Britain? The new prime minister has little room to maneuver on the UK’s brewing fiscal crisis. UK Special Coverage Photo by Richard Pohle-WPA Pool/Getty Images On Monday, Britain’s new prime minister, Andy Burnham, promised to “bring life’s essentials back under stronger public control to make them affordable again.” He has honored his pledge to help with the cost of living by restoring the £2 cap on bus fares and by reducing VAT on household electricity bills. Well, every little bit helps. But anyone who thinks that bus usage in the UK, which has…Open
The UK’s proposed Digital ID program, known as BritCard, has been officially canceled, with its $2.4 billion budget redirected to reduce VAT on electricity bills.
The British government’s proposed Digital ID program, known as BritCard, has been officially canceled, with its $2.4 billion budget redirected to reduce VAT on electricity bills. PULSE POINTS WHAT HAPPENED: Former British Prime Minister Keir Starmer ‘s proposed national digital identity program, known as BritCard, has been scrapped by new Prime Minister Andy Burnham , with ministers saying the move will help fund the removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) on domestic electricity bills beginning October 1. New Chancellor of the Exchequer (Treasury Secretary) John Healey said canceling the Digital ID program, previously estimated to cost the equivalent of $2.4 billion over three years, would finance the tax cut, which will also apply to…Open
The new prime minister has yet to show much cause for hope amid the UK’s fiscal spiral. The post Burnham Starts Premiership Short on Cash, Ideas appeared first on The American Conservative .
UK Special Coverage Burnham Starts Premiership Short on Cash, Ideas The new prime minister has yet to show much cause for hope amid the UK’s fiscal spiral. UK Special Coverage (Carl Court/Getty Images) Britain’s latest prime minister, the seventh in 10 years, registered his first policy failure even before he took office. Andy Burnham’s only concrete pledge on the doorstep of Number 10 this morning was to end rough sleeping in Britain. It didn’t take long for journalists to discover that he had failed in a similar promise when he became mayor of Greater Manchester. Indeed, rough sleeping roughly doubled…Open
As chancellor, John Healey, who quit as defense secretary in the former government, will fill one of the most consequential posts, overseeing fiscal and economic policy.
For the prospective prime minister, each candidate has drawbacks. The post The Race to Be the Next UK Chancellor appeared first on The American Conservative .
UK Special Coverage The Race to Be the Next UK Chancellor For the prospective prime minister, each candidate has drawbacks. UK Special Coverage The relationship between the prime minister and the chancellor is the most important in British politics. In short, they have to get on, or the government doesn’t. History is littered with examples of administrations that became dysfunctional because the first lord of the Treasury—to give the prime minister his full title—and the chancellor of the Exchequer did not see eye to eye. Most recently, when Tony Blair and Gordon Brown fell out in 2005 over the Labour succession, the…Open
The British prime minister says he’ll resign. But he’s not going quietly. The post Keir Starmer Bows Out appeared first on The American Conservative .
UK Special Coverage Keir Starmer Bows Out The British prime minister says he’ll resign. But he’s not going quietly. UK Special Coverage (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images) Prime Minister Keir Starmer has had his share of humiliations in recent weeks and months, but perhaps the worst and final insult was seeing his resignation today pre-announced yesterday by President Donald Trump on Truth Social. He had “failed,” was the president’s assessment. Only a year ago, Starmer was being called the “Trump Whisperer” because of his apparently cordial relations with the mercurial leader. That all went wrong…Open
The voters are in a state of electoral ataxia that makes political forecasting impossible. The post Angry Brits Could Make Burnham PM—Then Turn on Him appeared first on The American Conservative .
UK Special Coverage Angry Brits Could Make Burnham PM—Then Turn on Him The voters are in a state of electoral ataxia that makes political forecasting impossible. UK Special Coverage Britain has had six prime ministers in the last decade and is about to install a seventh. This seems inevitable following the stunning victory of Andy Burnham, the erstwhile mayor of Manchester, in the crucial Makerfield by-election Thursday night. He received 55 percent of the vote and crushed the life out of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. The Labour prime minister, Keir Starmer, is now under intense pressure to hand over the keys of Number Ten…Open
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has ruled out additional defense funding despite the resignation of his Defence Secretary and Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces, prompting warnings from military leaders about the country's waning military capabilities.
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has ruled out additional defense funding despite the resignation of his Defence Secretary and Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces, prompting warnings from military leaders about the country’s waning military capabilities. PULSE POINTS WHAT HAPPENED: British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced that no additional funding will be allocated to Britain’s military despite security concerns, despite his Secretary of Defence and Under-Secretary of State for the Armed Forces resigning, citing dangerous underfunding. DETAIL: Starmer insisted on Tuesday at the G7 summit in France, “The position on investment in defense is firstly that we increased, last year, defense spending from…Open