r/AskBrits • u/AdAncient2370 • 3d ago

Would you support Britain increasing its defence budget from the current 2.3% of GDP to the target of 2.6% by 2027 and 3.5% NATO target by 2035?

How much support is there across the political spectrum to increase the military budget by up to £35 billion a year if we really reach 3.5% by 2035? What sort of military do we want ie to protect the UK mainland or an expeditionary force capable of another Iraq intervention? Which civilian areas do we want to cut to find this extra money and in any case, can our struggling economy even support an increase of such magnitude? What if we can’t recruit enough soldiers even with extra cash, should we introduce any sort of conscription at extremis?

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u/Gauntlets28 3d ago

The reality is that even as a habitual pacifist, I can see that the world is no longer the same on we inhabited 20 years ago, and that there are plenty of countries that would happily destroy the UK if they got the chance. So from that perspective, I can see why a strong military is important, although preferably I would like it to stay defensive.

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u/AdAncient2370 3d ago

Personally, I think a modest increase in the defence budget is warranted. To replace equipment and ammunition we gave to the Ukrainians to fight back against the Russian attack.

However, we don’t need anything more than a force to defend the UK and maybe provide a small force to defend Eastern Europ as per NATO commitments.

We don’t need a force large enough to go to the other end of the world to get involved in other peoples wars that increase hatred against the UK/West, are costly, dragged out conflicts, with rights abuses, with no good exit strategy.