On Monday, the Prime Minister set out the results of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015. This review will form the foundation of our defence and military strategy for the rest of this Parliament and in the context of the barbaric attacks two weeks ago in Paris, as well as bombings in Baghdad and Lebanon, it is vital that we have a full-spectrum response to the horrors of ISIL and the ongoing conflict in Syria. That is why the Government will meet the NATO target of spending 2% of GDP on our defence budget.
This represents the second review of Britain’s military capacity since the Conservatives formed a Government in 2010 and demonstrates the commitment the Conservatives have to ensuring that our military can respond to threats in a changing international environment. We will do this through investing £178 billion over the next decade, creating two new Strike Brigades composed of 5,000 personnel, to rapidly respond to crises as they develop. The Government also reiterated its commitment to our nuclear deterrent in Trident, Britain’s ultimate insurance policy. At a time of great international uncertainty, it is irresponsible to gamble on Britain’s security by abandoning our independent nuclear deterrent.
Ensuring that our armed forces have the resources to meet the challenges we face is only part of our approach to ensuring a safe and secure Britain. I am proud that thanks to our renewed economic security, we are the only major country in the world which is simultaneously going to meet the NATO target of spending 2% our GDP on defence and the UN target of spending 0.7% on development, while also increasing investment in our security and intelligence agencies and in counter-terrorism. This underlines how committed this Government is to the long-term security of Britain.