UK PM weighs delay to roadmap for higher defence spending, Times reports

LONDON, Oct 6 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Andy Burnham is considering delaying an announcement on how and when Britain will raise defence spending to 3% of GDP, The Times reported on Tuesday, pushing back a key milestone on the path to meeting NATO's target of 3.5% by 2035. Britain is under pressure to spell out how it will meet the NATO commitment and respond to a heightened security threat. Burnham has pledged to meet the 2035 target, but his government has yet to set out the steps required to get there.

Finance minister John Healey said earlier this year he would outline an initial path to 3% of GDP at the next spending review, which was expected in spring 2027. The Times cited a source as saying the "working assumption" was that the review would take place in October 2027. A spokesperson for the finance ministry said it was wrong talk of a delay. "The date of the Spending Review has not been set. This is pure rumour and speculation," the spokesperson said in an email.

Highlighting the security challenges facing Britain, the US on Sunday removed bombers from an airbase in England after it was targeted in a suspected Iranian plot. Ministers have repeatedly delayed decisions on additional defence funding over the past two years. Healey, finance minister since July, resigned as defence minister in the previous government after failing to secure funding to raise defence spending to 3% of GDP by 2030, a move that helped bring down then-Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

According to the Office for Budget Responsibility, reaching that interim goal would cost the government an additional £17.3 billion ($22.9 billion). To meet the needs of the existing Defence Investment Plan, Healey needs to fill a £4.7 billion funding gap. Healey is due to deliver his first budget on October 28. ($1 = 0.7559 pounds) (Reporting by Sarah Young. Editing by Mark Potter)