Keir Starmer pledged to slash aid spending to boost defence today as he braces for a crucial trip to meet Donald Trump and try to repair Western ties.
In a dramatic Commons statement, the PM finally laid out a trajectory for boosting the military amid rising alarm about America withdrawing support.
Sir Keir warned of rising 'instability' saying leaders 'must stand by Ukraine' and face down the 'menace' of Vladimir Putin. Pointing to the Salisbury poison attack, he insisted the Russian dictator would only respond to 'strength'.
The premier said the UK will be pumping 2.5 per cent of GDP into defence by 2027, describing it as the 'biggest sustained increase since the end of the Cold War'. The figure will rise to 3 per cent 'in the next Parliament', he added.
But he acknowledged that the only way to fund that was cutting the foreign aid budget - saying that will fall from 0.5 per cent to 0.3 per cent.
