UK’s long-awaited defence plan allocates £5 billion to drones

LONDON, June 29 (Reuters) – Britain will unveil its long-delayed Defence Investment Plan on Tuesday, prioritising £5 billion of investment in drones and ​a focus on autonomous systems, to try to modernise and build up its depleted armed forces at a time ‌of rising threats.

The blueprint faced last-minute wrangling after former defence minister John Healey resigned earlier this month with a scathing critique of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s inability to raise the finances needed to keep the country safe from threats.

Starmer has since then said he will also quit, with his replacement likely ​to take office within weeks, making the DIP one of the prime minister’s final policy announcements.

His plan will focus on attack drones, autonomous systems and uncrewed ships and submarines, favouring ⁠technology over warships, to reflect the reality of modern warfare as seen in Ukraine, according to a statement released on Monday.

“This ​game-changing investment will strengthen our Armed Forces,” Starmer said before a major speech on Tuesday when the plan will be published in ​full.

He has promised to raise defence spending to 3% of national output in the next parliament, from the 2.6% it is expected to reach next year, after a defence review in 2025 said Britain needed to shift to “war-fighting readiness”.

But defence chiefs have said there is still a £28 billion funding ​gap over the next four years, and the government statement did not provide details of how far the DIP would go ​to meeting the shortfall, closely watched by those in the industry.

Britain’s new defence minister, Dan Jarvis, a former British Army Major, said uncrewed ‌systems were ⁠defining modern warfare, and the DIP he has helped reshape in recent weeks would ensure soldiers get what they need faster.

Ukraine uses 200,000 drones a month in its war against Russia, and technology innovations happen within weeks, not the years taken to develop the large platforms which have been the main feature of British security in the post-Cold War era.

The nine-month delay in publishing the ​plan has stymied investment in what ​should be a boom industry, ⁠companies say, and has led to some private criticism abroad as to whether Britain was either willing or able to boost defence spending.

Starmer will attend the NATO summit in Ankara from July ​7 to 8, alongside U.S. President Donald Trump and dozens of other leaders of alliance members, ​at a time ⁠when Europe is trying to come to terms with the U.S. pivot away from protecting it.

Earlier this year, Britain, which until World War Two had the largest navy in the world, was left exposed when it was unable to immediately deploy an advanced warship to ⁠Cyprus after ​its air base there was hit by an Iranian-made drone.

The government had ​already said on Sunday it would scrap plans to replace its ageing destroyers and will instead procure at least six “Common Combat Vessels” to serve as control hubs for ​uncrewed systems, while Jarvis has also announced new high-speed boats for commandos.