Mordaunt calls for 5% defence spend as minister sets out home defence plans

Former Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt has said the UK must wake up as a nation to the threat of a conflict with Russia and argued that higher defence spending is needed to prevent war. She spoke in an interview about a television war game that examines what could happen if Russia launched an attack on UK soil. The production features real political figures.

Mordaunt said the UK has to act now. "We've got to wake up as a nation. If we don't, we're going to face a conflict in a few years time," she said. She added that she did not want people to be frightened, but wanted them to see how capable the military is. "If you have credible defences, you have credible deterrent," she said.

She explained that she took part because her regular media appearances calling for rearmament had not worked. She believed the programme could give the public the whole picture of how fragile and under-resilient the country is. She also said it was timely because a budget would follow shortly after it airs.

Mordaunt said most Europeans, including Britons, think there will be not just a conflict within the next decade but a third world war. She said key people in the US administration had told her the next few decades would be the worst humanity has lived through. She stressed that the future is not yet written and that anyone in office with influence must ensure the UK has what it needs to defend the country, care for citizens and meet its duties to allies.

She rejected the idea that advocates of higher defence spending are warmongers. She said she wanted to spend money to prevent a conflict. She argued that the UK should spend 5% of GDP on defence, the 3.5% plus 1.5% that NATO requires and says is needed. Without that spending and a clear trajectory, she warned, the UK could end up spending 50% of GDP on a wall. She said the British people would not accept any excuse that the signs were missed. Asked whether war was inevitable, she said defence chiefs believe the UK has four years to improve its position, otherwise conflict is very likely.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis also spoke about national resilience. He said the world is more dangerous than at any point in his lifetime. He said the government is bringing forward the biggest sustained investment in defence spending since the Cold War. It is exercising its home defence programme, and next year will conduct the largest home defence exercise for a number of years. Departments are also updating their crisis plans, known as the War Books, for the first time since 2004. All government departments are having to think about how they would respond in a conflict, he said.

Asked what good looks like and whether the Chancellor would provide resources to fill capability gaps, Jarvis said he believed in proper preparation and was working with colleagues across government. He said he had no doubt the Chancellor and the Prime Minister would ensure the resources needed to keep the country safe. He pointed to commitments to NATO to spend 3.5% of GDP by 2035 and said the best way to meet them was to set out a trajectory in the next spending review, due next year.

Jarvis also confirmed that a household resilience campaign will be launched later this year, in the autumn. He said it would help households cope with everyday emergencies such as extreme weather and bring the UK into line with European partners. He did not give details of what it would include. Asked whether he has 72 hours of emergency supplies, he said he is very well prepared but would not be drawn on the specifics.