MoD: Is UK military spending decreasing? Portsmouth politicians weigh in on funds for Royal Navy, Army and RAF

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt only briefly mentioned defence in the House of Commons last week. No extra immediate funding increases were allocated, but he said money for the Royal Navy, British Army and RAF was still a priority - with the government still planning to raise spending to a higher level of GDP.

"We are providing more military support to Ukraine than nearly any other country and our spending will rise to 2.5 per cent as soon as economic conditions allow," he said in parliament. The lack of details caused criticism from many, with some accusing the government of lacking a "credible plan" to support the armed forces. Defence secretary Grant Shapps told Sky News that the UK was in a "pre-war world", citing tensions in the Middle East, the bitter conflict between Israel and Hamas, and the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

The national publication said defence spending appeared to be decreasing, citing tables linked in the budget itself - causing further confusion and mixed-messaging.

Is UK defence and military spending decreasing?

In the Spring Budget, available online to the public, table 2.1 said planned defence spending in 2023/2024 is £35bn, but showed a fall to £32.8bn in 2024/2025. Table 2.2, titled Capital Departmental Expenditure Limits, valued 2023/2024 plans at £19.2bn and 2024/2025 plans at £18.9bn.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) took to X, formerly Twitter, stating these falling figures do not show a decline in defence spending and said it is "growing in real terms".

The MoD said: "The 2024/25 figures in The Budget publication do not yet include the agreed additional funding from the Treasury Reserves - the money which, as in previous years, includes funding for Ukraine and stockpiles will be added shortly when voted through by Parliament as supplementary estimates. On the other hand, the published 2023/24 figures do include these same pots of funding, including funding for Ukraine, as they were voted through in the same process last year. Budgets can only reflect past supplementary estimates but not future ones. This therefore leads each year to the Budget Red Book giving the perception that budgets are falling when in reality the defence budget is increasing this year when all agreed funding is taken into account."

The post failed to convince many, with some users accusing the government of including Ukraine figures to inflate the statistics, with others accusing the MoD of "gaslighting". Public Accounts Committee (PAC) previously warned the real deficit between the MoD’s budget and the UK's desired military capabilities was close to £29bn, with the gap also reported to be £16.9bn. With the Royal Navy's current problems with recruitment and declining fleet numbers, politicians and others believe military spending is decreasing.

An MoD spokesman said: "The government fully recognises the growing security threat, which is why we have set out our longer-term aspiration to invest 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence when the fiscal and economic circumstances allow. We are already spending more than two per cent of GDP on Defence, exceeding our NATO target. The Prime Minister has been clear that the target and path towards 2.5% will be set out at the next Spending Review.”

The spokesman said the government will spend £55.6bn on defence in 2024/2025, with certain figures such as £280 million for stockpiles not yet being added to the defence budget from the treasury reserve.

What do the politicians think?

Labour politician Stephen Morgan, Portsmouth South MP, said: "The Conservatives have admitted that the armed forces have been hollowed out and underfunded under their watch. Over the last 14 years, the government has cut the British Army to the smallest size since Napoleon, removed one in five ships from the Royal Navy, and missed recruitment targets every year.

“Labour has a proud record on defence. When we left government in 2010, the British Army had more than 100,000 full time troops and we were spending 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence – a level that’s not been matched in any year since under the Tories. Labour will always spend what is required to defend the country, do what is required to keep our citizens safe and reform what is required to fix the serious problems.”

Dame Caroline Dinenage, Conservative MP for Gosport, said she is continuing to push for the New Medium Helicopter programme to be situated in her constituency. "With the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, it’s welcome that the Budget reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to NATO defence spending targets through an £11 billion boost," she said. "Unlike many of our NATO allies we have consistently met that target since it was introduced in 2006."

Portsmouth North MP Penny Mordaunt was approached for comment. She replied through a government spokesperson. They said: "Our armed forces are among the very best in the world and we are spending a record amount on defence. This includes an extra £24bn between 2020-2025, the largest sustained increase since the end of the Cold War. The military is protecting the UK and our allies, including on every single NATO mission, supporting Ukraine against Putin’s aggression and tackling Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.”