Wes Streeting discusses US relations and defence spending

New Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has given his first major interview since taking office, addressing the challenge of rebuilding relations with the United States, defence spending priorities, and his own past controversial comments about Donald Trump and Israel.

Streeting, who was moved from the health brief in the recent reshuffle, acknowledged that he had previously called President Trump an "odious, sad little man" in a 2017 social media post. But he said those were not comments he would make today, and he is now focused on working with his US counterpart, Pete Hegseth. He pointed to the deep and integral defence and security alliance between the two countries, and said the UK has skills and capabilities that the US relies on.

On defence spending, Streeting said President Trump had been right to challenge Europe, including the UK, to step up and do more. He described the UK's dependence on the US as an "over dependence" and argued that the UK should be proud of its own contributions.

When pressed on his past criticism of Israel, Streeting did not back down. He said he would not resile from comments he had made about Israel's conduct in Gaza and the West Bank, but insisted he was a friend of Israel who wanted it to be secure and thrive as a democracy. He argued that sometimes the test of good friendship is being willing to tell friends things they do not want to hear.

The interview also touched on the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, where Streeting said the UK is playing a defensive role and is in talks with the US and allies about securing free shipping once the current conflict ends.

Separately, the broadcast noted that more than a thousand military personnel have been deployed to help with the response to wildfires in Spain, where a state of emergency has been declared.