PM Committed to Publishing Defence Investment Plan Ahead of Nato Summit
Sir Keir Starmer is "determined to publish" the long-delayed military spending plan before next month's Nato summit, according to the defence secretary.
John Healey outlined the prime minister's latest timetable for the 10-year defence investment plan (DIP), as unions and defence firms warned that continued delays pose a "threat" to British jobs, skills, and national security.
Prospect general secretary Mike Clancy said defence workers and civil servants are "crying out for certainty," while trade body ADS noted that some small and medium enterprises are "really struggling."
The DIP was initially expected to be published in autumn 2025. The Nato summit is scheduled to take place from 7 July.
The DIP will detail how new equipment and defence infrastructure will be funded over the coming decade and follows the comprehensive Strategic Defence Review (SDR) published on 2 June 2025.
Parliamentary Exchanges on Defence Investment Plan
Speaking in the Commons on Monday, Conservative shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge asked whether the Treasury has approved the plan.
Healey did not provide a direct answer, stating:
"I can say to him very clearly that the prime minister is determined that we publish the defence investment plan before the Nato summit."
Cartlidge responded:
"No wonder the defence investment plan is so late - Labour still haven't worked out how to pay for it."
Liberal Democrat MP Edward Morello expressed that firms are "frustrated by the repeated delays" to the DIP and suggested the Commons would likely receive Healey's announcement "with a degree of scepticism."
The West Dorset MP added:
"Companies in my constituency have been telling me that at this rate they will be European or US headquartered by this time next year. We risk losing jobs, sovereign capability and billions of pounds of investment."
Defence Minister Luke Pollard stated that the government has signed "1,200 major defence deals" since the general election in July 2024 and is "not waiting" for the DIP to secure agreements with "companies large and small."
Unions and Industry Voices Warn of Risks from Delays
Prior to the Commons debate, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said:
"The government's ongoing failure to produce the DIP is a threat to British jobs and skills, as well as a serious threat to national security now and for generations to come."
Graham emphasized that "money must be spent in the UK" when the DIP is finally agreed and stated that "anything else would be a betrayal."
She added:
"The government has a duty to ensure that contracts including a new tranche of Typhoon fast jets, the Skynet satellite and the A400M transport plane are signed off and production lines in Britain are rolling as soon as possible."
ADS, a trade association representing the UK's aerospace, defence, security, and space industries, urged ministers to proceed with the DIP.
Chief executive Kevin Craven described the 12-month gap between the SDR and the DIP as "pretty abysmal."
He told the BBC:
"We're in a world where all of the threat assessments say that 2027 could be the point at which we come under credible military threats. Whether we do or we don't, I'm not being alarmist about it, we need to be ready for that and we're not, simplistically."
Craven noted that ADS members, especially smaller firms, are warning about threats to their long-term future if progress does not begin soon.
He said:
"We have seen firms either moving out of the sector or changing direction and it will continue, no question about that."
Clancy, from Prospect and also a member of the Defence Industrial Joint Council, stated:
"Every month of delay is a month where fewer jobs and training places are created, and where industry is unable to invest in the infrastructure we will need to ensure sovereign capability."
Strategic Defence Review and Funding Challenges
The SDR outlined a shift towards "warfighting readiness" to deter threats and pledged billions in extra spending for ammunition, next-generation fast jets, drones, and new attack submarines.
Reports have indicated that the DIP has been delayed due to disagreements within government regarding new funding and how to finance existing defence arrangements.
Parliamentary Efforts to Expedite DIP Publication
On Tuesday, the Conservatives plan to attempt to compel the government to legislate a deadline for the DIP's publication.
The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the Armed Forces Bill requiring the government to present the DIP to Parliament within a month of the legislation's approval.
While the amendment is unlikely to pass given the government's sizeable Commons majority, the debate may highlight Labour MPs' frustration over the delay.
Michelle Scrogham, Labour MP for Barrow and Furness, warned in March that arms suppliers have had to lay off staff and postpone investment decisions while awaiting the report's release.
Labour's Catherine McKinnell, representing Newcastle upon Tyne North, stated during the King's Speech debate last month that the DIP delay risks having "real world consequences."
She added that "certainty" is necessary to protect supply chains and major contractors.
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