Ex-British Army head warns Rishi Sunak over 'global threat'; 'Parallels to 1930s growing'

The former head of the British Army General Sir Richard Dannatt accused UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of acting like 'an ostrich with his head in the sand' about the dangers facing the country. Sir Richard Dannatt said, "The parallels to the 1930s grow stronger - a threat from a dictator in Europe and a refusal to reinvest or rearm."

Sir Richard Dannatt's remarks came after Rishi Sunak boasted that the army is getting everything they need today as he confirmed a £5 billion increase in defense spending. 

Unveiling a £5 billion cash injection for the Ministry of Defence, the PM reportedly said that the UK must prepare to hold its ground in an increasingly hostile world. Sunak said the military was now enjoying the largest sustained increase in funding since the Cold War. 

According to sources, the financial bump is only about half what Defense Secretary Ben Wallace had called for. However, Sunak has only set a vague target of increasing spending to 2.5% of GDP.

Speaking to media reporters en route to a US-hosted defense conference in San Diego, Sunak said the scale of the extra cash at a time of tight budgets was a very strong and positive statement about our ambitions.

Sunak added, "We have seen all too clearly in the past year how the global crisis affects us at home, with Russia’s ferocious attack on Ukraine driving energy and food sources. We will strengthen our national defence, from economic security to technology supply chains and intelligence capabilities, so that we are never again vulnerable to the actions of a hostile power."

UK launches 2023 Integrated Review Refresh amid growing volatility

Rishi Sunak has announced that the UK will ramp up investment in defence to meet the challenges of an increasingly volatile and complex world, as the Government launches an update to the 2021 Integrated Review.

IR23 (Integrated Review Refresh 2023) was commissioned to respond to emerging geopolitical threats, from Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine to China’s economic coercion and increased competition between states. These trends were identified in the original IR and have intensified in the last two years, with far-reaching consequences for the security and prosperity of the British people.