June 11, 2026
British defence minister John Healey quit on Thursday in a dispute over military spending, accusing Prime Minister Keir Starmer of failing to commit the resources that are needed to keep the country safe from heightened threats.
The unexpected resignation, accompanied by a scathing public letter, compounds the pressure on Starmer when he is facing a likely leadership challenge and exposes the crisis at the heart of the British government - how it can ramp up defence spending when there is little money to spare and the welfare budget keeps rising.
Healey had been locked in talks with Starmer and finance minister Rachel Reeves for months over how to meet the additional military spending needed, delaying Britain's Defence Investment Plan, which was due last year.
"You have 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," Healey said in his letter to Starmer.
