Britain08 September, 20262 min read
Andy Burnham Says National Security Can’t Come At Social Security Expense
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Burnham says security can't come at social security's expense; won't cut welfare to fund defense. Refused to commit to a 3% of GDP defence target by 2030.
6 outlets told this the same way.
The Independent was read line by line by the Watchdog: 1.2. See the score →
PMQs clash over funding
At Prime Minister’s Questions, Andy Burnham insisted national security “can’t come at the expense of social security” as he faced Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch over whether Britain would spend 3% of GDP on defence by 2030 and how it would be paid for. Burnham warned that the Conservatives’ plan to partly fund increased defence spending by saving at least £4bn through reforms to housing benefit would create “hundreds of thousands of children in temporary accommodation.”
The BBC said Burnham also stressed the government would meet the Nato target of spending 3.5% of GDP on defence by 2035, with a target date for hitting the 3% figure set out in the spending review in the spring. Badenoch pressed Burnham on whether he was “unable” or “just unwilling” to meet the 2030 target, while Burnham replied that “This chancellor of all chancellors will be willing to provide that funding to our armed forces.”
Badenoch challenges Burnham
Badenoch seized on Burnham’s comments, with a party spokesperson telling the BBC: "Britain heard it loud and clear today: Andy Burnham will not cut welfare to fund the defence of our country." The BBC reported that Burnham’s team said “crude cuts” could “put people into crisis” by making them homeless and so creating higher costs elsewhere in the system to support them.
In the Independent, Burnham warned that taking £4bn out of housing benefit would not build the “right consensus,” because it would create “levels of homelessness in this country that we wouldn’t have seen before – hundreds of thousands of children in temporary accommodation.” The Independent also quoted Burnham saying the government would honour Nato commitments to reach 3.5 per cent by 2035, with a target for 3 per cent funding set out in the spending review, as Badenoch argued the prime minister was unwilling to fund defence rather than welfare.
Welfare bill and defence targets
The BBC said cutting the welfare bill is a key part of Tory proposals for funding increased defence spending, with spending on benefits forecast to rise to £408.6bn in 2030/31 according to figures from the Department for Work and Pensions. The BBC also highlighted concern about nearly one million young people in the UK who are not in education, employment or training—known as “Neets”—as Burnham argued he would “bring the welfare budget down” by tackling that group.
Burnham told the BBC that the “Labour way” to get the welfare bill down would involve changing education, supporting young people and providing more mental health support, while Badenoch accused him of being “continuity Keir” and failing to cut welfare. The BBC reported that the government asked former minister Alan Milburn to look into the issue and that he is expected to publish his final recommendations for how to tackle the problem shortly, as the defence funding timetable remains contested between the 2030 and 2035 targets.