Prime Ministers Office 10 Downing Street
My first duty as Prime Minister is the security of the British people.
And fulfilling that profound responsibility is only possible because of you.
Just ten days ago, I gave the order for the RAF to join an international effort
intercepting a barrage of Iranian missiles headed towards Israel.
Those pilots, like you, and like every generation of British service men and women before you
were willing to put their own safety over the line
for the security of others and the defence of our liberties and our values.
From your Regiments service in Iraq and Afghanistan
to your current role here in Poland, protecting NATOs eastern flank
you have made those sacrifices in the service of our country.
I am truly humbled by your courage and professionalism.
And on behalf of a proud and grateful nation, let me simply say: thank you.
But I havent just brought you together today to express my gratitude.
I want to talk to you about how we equip you to do your duty
in an increasingly dangerous world.
We have entered a period of history in which competition between countries has sharpened profoundly.
An axis of authoritarian states with different values to ours
like Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China
are increasingly assertive.
The danger they pose is not new.
But what is new is that these countries or their proxies
are causing more instability, more quickly, in more places at once.
And theyre increasingly acting together
making common cause in an attempt to reshape the world order.
Now I know there are some people who will think these are faraway problems.
But they are not.
They pose real risks to the United Kingdoms security and prosperity.
Russia has already poisoned people on British soil with chemical weapons.
Caused energy bills to soar.
Weaponised migration.
And sent technology to Iran in exchange for weapons, like the Shaheed drones
that I saw myself are wreaking such devastation on Ukraine.
Iran themselves have threatened to kill and kidnap people within our borders for exercising their right to free speech.
And used proxies like the Houthis, to attack British ships in the Red Sea
disrupting supplies of crucial goods to our high streets.
North Korea, too, is supplying munitions and artillery to Russia
and their hackers have targeted British businesses and the NHS.
And Chinese state-affiliated actors have conducted malicious cyber campaigns
against British MPs.
China itself is engaged in a huge military modernisation programme.
Potential flashpoints in the Indo-Pacific
could have an impact on the global economy far larger even than Covid.
And China is increasingly working with others to try and reshape the world
including their so-called unlimited partnership with Russia.
So the new assertiveness of these authoritarian states far from our shores must concern us.
Because they are increasingly acting together
against the fundamental values that we all hold dear
of democracy, freedom, and the rule of law.
Now, we must not overstate the danger.
Were not on the brink of war.
And nor do we seek it.
And people should feel reassured
that the UKs armed forces are some of the most professional
well-trained, well-equipped, and battle-ready in the world.
And Im incredibly proud of all theyve achieved.
From patrolling the Arctic Circle as part of the Joint Expeditionary Force
to the campaign against Daesh in the deserts of Iraq and Syria.
From protecting the freedom of navigation in the Red Sea
to policing the skies above Eastern Europe.
And just look at the investments weve made in the last decade.
40 billion in the British Army
who proudly provide one of NATOs strategic reserves
with 16,000 troops deployed to Europe this year.
The Royal Air Force, equipped with new Typhoons, Chinooks, F35s
with the GCAP programme delivering new fighter jets with Japan and Italy.
The Royal Navy is a carrier navy once again
with 22 new ships and submarines on the way
and the historic AUKUS partnership building the most advanced nuclear-powered subs the world has ever known.
And weve launched a new national endeavour to invigorate and invest more in our nuclear deterrent.
And all of this is combined with our outstanding diplomatic network
development expertise, law enforcement and intelligence agencies
and our support for allies above all the 12bn weve provided to Ukraine.
So Im proud of our record on defence.
And confident in our ability to deter our adversaries.
and ensure the security of the United Kingdom.
But in a world thats the most dangerous
its been since the end of the Cold War
we cannot and must not - be complacent.
As Churchill said, in 1934:
To urge the preparation of defence is not to assert the imminence of war.
On the contrary, if war were imminent
preparations for defence would be too late.
I believe we must do more
to defend our country, our interests, and our values.
So today, Im announcing
the biggest strengthening of our national defence for a generation.
We will increase defence spending to a new baseline of 2.5% of GDP, by 2030.
That starts today.
And rises steadily in each and every year.
Over the next six years, well invest an additional 75bn in our defence.
And it will be fully funded with no increase in borrowing or debt.
So this is not some vague aspiration for the future.
We have a clear plan for what well spend, when well spend it, and how we pay for it.
A plan that makes the United Kingdom by far the largest defence power in Europe - and second largest in NATO.
Today is a landmark moment in the defence of the United Kingdom.
This is a generational investment in British security and British prosperity.
It makes us safer at home and stronger abroad.
Now we have three immediate priorities for this new investment.
First, we will put the UKs own defence industry on a war footing.
One of the central lessons of the war in Ukraine
is that we need deeper stockpiles of munitions
and for industry to be able to replenish them more quickly.
So today, were giving 10bn in munitions to give industry long-term funding certainty
backed by long-term contracts
so they can produce more, be readier to surge capacity
and move to always on production, when required.
From surface-to-air-missiles made in Bolton
to anti-tank weapons in Belfast
we will replenish our stockpiles
all while supporting British jobs right across the Union.
But its not just about investing more we must invest better.
For too long, too much of our defence procurement
has been over-complex, over-budget, and over-time.
So we are making radical reforms to our procurement model
to make sure this new investment delivers value for money.
And to encourage private sector investment into defence production
I can also announce today that were going to put beyond doubt that defence investment
does count towards environmental, social and governance assessments.
There is nothing more ethical than defending our way of life from those who threaten it.
Now all of this will put us at the forefront of the global defence industry
allow us to hugely ramp up defence production
and give our armed forces the capability they need to keep us safe.
But as in so many areas of our lives, technology is changing the face of war.
So our second immediate priority is innovation and new technology.
We need to innovate and adapt faster than our adversaries
in space and cyberspace just as much as land, sea, and air.
Look at Ukraine.
Many aspects of the war would be familiar to a soldier from WWI or II
Yet others would be unimaginably different.
Like the fact that cheap, high-tech, autonomous drones could disable large parts of Russias Black Sea fleet.
The good news is that innovation is already one of our greatest strengths.
The UKs own Dragonfire laser directed energy weapon
costs only 10 a shot
yet is accurate enough to hit a 1 coin from a kilometre away.
And today were going further.
We will increase defence R&D to at minimum to 5% of the defence budget.
Invest far more in autonomous drones.
And we will set up a new Defence Innovation Agency.
So that for the first time, decisions about defence innovation
will be brought together in a single, strategic agency
that will be freed from red tape
and work with the private sector on emerging new technologies.
Now third, we must support Ukraine for the long term.
Since the Cold War ended, the freedom of our continent has been based on a simple idea:
That it is for people to decide the fate of their countries, not foreign armies.
But allow Putin to win in Ukraine
and that principle of sovereignty would be undermined.
We would be dragged back to a world
where brute force, rather