Extract from Budget debate: Armoured Fighting Vehicles - Oct 27

Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East) (Con):...Defence spending is overstretched. It includes space and cyber-security, which is having an impact on the three conventional services. The Army is being forced to cut the number of tanks, Armoured Fighting Vehicles and troops. The Royal Air Force is cutting the number of heavy lift aircraft and the number of F-35s—our new fighter aircraft; we were supposed to buy 138, and we are buying only 48—and the Navy is cutting the number of frigates. Cutting the defence budget at this point is a grave mistake, which our competitors will note, and it sends the wrong message, post Afghanistan, about our commitment and appetite to play a more influential role on the international stage...

To read the whole debate, CLICK HERE