Conservative response to John Healey's morning round

James Cartlidge MP, Shadow Defence Secretary, said:

“The government has serious questions to answer about the credibility of their defence spending plans.

“In just 24 hours the supposed funding has unravelled, and now it appears that the figure is half of what Keir Starmer promised to Parliament yesterday.

“If Labour are serious about boosting our armed forces, they need to be straight about the facts of what they've announced. On Chagos we've constantly been led a merry dance by Ministers, refusing to tell us what the cost of the deal will be. We need transparency on these critical matters of national security.”