Army cuts mean damaged Boxer vehicles ‘will be left to the enemy’
The government has cut £2bn from the army’s frontline equipment as the chancellor seeks to fill the defence spending hole in his first budget. As part of the funding cuts, the Ministry of Defence has shelved plans to develop three new battlefield vehicles, including one that would be capable of recovering damaged Boxers, a British armoured fighting vehicle system. John Healey faces a £4.7bn gap in defence spending at his budget next week. Most commented 1 Russian strikes ‘leave half a million Ukrainian homes without power’ Russia-Ukraine war 387 comments 2 Third of investors ready to stop UK spending after budget Politics 193 comments 3 ‘We’re 34 — we can’t wait to start being landlords’ Property & Home 76 comments 4 Douglas Dunn obituary: Scottish poet and academic Obituaries 25 comments 5 The beauty expert’s all-time favourite hair products Beauty 19 comments Wes Streeting , the defence secretary, was warned that scrapping the project would mean that Boxers could be left “stranded in full view of the enemy” with no possibility of recovering them, according to The Daily Telegraph. Top stories 1 Clodagh McKenna: I always get up at 6am on holiday. I love the calm Inspiration 2 16 of the best safaris in Africa Africa 3 13 of the best affordable hotels in New York New York City 4 The Marylebone pop-up for Christmas-maxxers LUXX 5 The best luxury gifts for Christmas 2026 LUXX Luke Pollard, the defence readiness minister, confirmed last week that the three vehicle models in the MoD’s mechanised infantry vehicle programme were “no longer being pursued”. He told MPs in a written response to questions that the army was “considering how the underlying capability requirements will be addressed”. Luke Pollard GETTY IMAGES The vehicles were intended for use in “complex recovery missions” and to be fitted with cranes and winches. The overall armoured vehicle programme budget has now been cut from more than £7bn to more than £5bn as a result of “funding removal following army reprioritisation”. The army still expects to receive about 600 Boxers, but the full programme is now not expected to be delivered before 2031. Advertisement The MoD said the latest changes related to “future spend that was uncommitted”, and that officials were “exploring alternative options for maximum battlefield effectiveness”. Top stories 1 The ten companies fund managers think will make them billions Saving & Investing 2 ‘Mum is dating a fraudster. What can I do?’ Family Finances 3 Prepare now for the inheritance tax mess coming for your pension Tax Streeting also said that the armed forces needed to “live within their means” amid concerns that the army may have to halt non-essential training activities to save money. Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, and James Cartlidge, shadow defence secretary, in a Boxer in March Peter Byrne/PA In his first oral questions in the Commons as defence secretary yesterday, he said that there were historical problems of “routine overspending” in the MoD, which he intended to change. This required “reprioritisation”, he said, including around training. Budget 2026 predictions: when is it and what could be announced? In a speech today Kemi Badenoch , the Conservative leader, will call on the government to find savings elsewhere. She will say that the “whole argument on defence spending” would disappear if the interest rate on government debt were reduced.