John Healey's bombshell resignation as defence secretary is linked to a secret funding row between Sir Keir Starmer and Ed Miliband, it has been suggested. Mr Healey said Sir Keir had been 'unable and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats' in a letter to the Prime Minister today.
However, the PM had been hoping to divert funds from a £60billion pot earmarked for net zero investment before energy secretary Mr Miliband vetoed the move, Conservative MP Esther McVey told the Daily Expresso podcast.
'I'll tell you what I have heard in Parliament,' she said. 'Ed Miliband has got billions, £60billion that he's wanting to invest in net zero. I believe, and I've heard it from very good sources, that Starmer was hoping to get some of that money for the Defence Investment Plan (DIP) from the net zero department, from Ed Miliband, who said no because he is a net zero zealot.'
Mr Miliband oversaw a partnership between Great British Energy and the Crown Estate aimed at unlocking £60billion in clean energy investment in July 2024. He has cited the milestone figure as part of a wider effort to turbocharge renewable energy production, create green jobs and lower energy bills.
Mr Healey said he stepped down from the Labour Government after receiving a financial settlement for the DIP that 'falls well short of what is required'. He told Sir Keir: 'After explaining to you that I would not be able to accept a DIP settlement that does not give our forces the resources they need, I am now left with no other option than to submit my resignation.'
While the Government has committed to spending 3.5% of GDP on defence by 2035, Mr Healey said the plan he was presented with on Monday moved too slowly, with defence spending rising to just 2.68% in 2030 after hitting 2.6% this year. He warned that the delay of extra support until after 2030 could 'make our country less safe', when the 'imperative to speed up readiness to fight is in the first two years'.
Mr Healey's resignation is just the latest blow to Sir Keir's Government, making him the fourth Cabinet minister to leave since Labour took power and the second to resign over policy differences, following health secretary Wes Streeting's exit last month. The DIP, which was commissioned as part of the Strategic Defence Review almost a year ago, has faced repeated delays amid wrangling over funding.
Reports suggest the Government had planned to publish it on Thursday with a £13.5billion uplift, which military officials have warned wouldn't be enough to bolster the armed forces against growing global threats. A Government spokesperson said: 'This country is safer because of the decisions Keir Starmer has made and we will continue to act in our national interest. It is this Labour Government and this Labour Prime Minister that is delivering the largest sustained boost to defence spending since the Cold War. We cut the international aid budget to make record investment in our armed forces, and now the PM is imposing cuts on other government departments to fund billions more. The Defence Investment Plan will deliver the capability our armed forces need.'
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has been contacted for comment.
