Wayne
David MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for the Armed Forces and Defence
Procurement, responding
to the National Audit Office’s report on the MoD Equipment Plan, said:
“Today’s
report from the National Audit Office should serve as a wake-up call to
ministers. The warning signs have been there for a long time but it is becoming
increasingly clear that the Government is in danger of losing control of the
defence budget.
“Ministers
ought to have clearly defined priorities and should ensure that, in these
uncertain times, Britain’s defence expenditure should not be the subject of ill
thought-out public expenditure cuts. The defence budget has been slashed since
2010 and the Government is only meeting the 2 per cent of GDP commitment
through creative accounting.
“The
Government should meet this commitment properly. Ministers also need to respond
urgently to the concerns raised by the NAO. And they should confirm when the
long-overdue National Shipbuilding Strategy will be published.
“Only
Labour can deliver a serious, joined-up Defence Industrial Strategy, as we did
in Government. Our approach would safeguard Britain’s industrial base, secure
high quality jobs throughout the supply chain, and protect our national
sovereignty, while achieving value for money.”
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