Tuesday 28 June 2022 01:09 PM Britons 'face MORE tax rises' to fund extra military spending trends now
Britons were today warned they face more tax rises to fund higher defence spending as the West counters the threat from Russia.
Economists said the Treasury could need to raise more revenue if it agrees to a demand from Ben Wallace for £10billion extra funding.
In a letter to Boris Johnson, the Defence Secretary highlighted alarming gaps in capabilities such as a lack of drones, not enough pilots to fly multi-billion-pound stealth jets and a shortage of crew aboard Royal Navy nuclear submarines.
In a landmark speech at a RUSI conference today, Mr Wallace will argue that the UK's annual defence budget should rise to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2028 - well above the Nato minimum of 2 per cent.
The respected IFS think-tank said the increase would be a 'big deal' and take funding back to 1990s levels.
Director Paul Johnson pointed out that the tax burden is already due to reach record levels as the government tries to balance the books in the wake of Covid.
Tweeting a chart showing how more money for health budgets had been found by easing back on military spending since the 1950s, Mr Johnson said: 'Reduction in defence spending over past 60 years made way for welfare state without need to raise taxes.
'No further scope to cut it and taxes are rising to record levels. If spending on defence *rises* again then more tax rises, or curtailing of welfare state, will be needed.'
In a landmark speech at a RUSI conference today, Ben Wallace will argue that the UK's annual defence budget should rise to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2028 - well above the Nato minimum of 2 per cent
Director Paul Johnson pointed out that the tax burden is already due to reach record levels as the government tries to balance the books in the wake of Covid
Mr Johnson tweeted a chart showing how more money for health budgets had been found by easing back on military spending since the 1950s
The speech is the second time in recent months Mr Wallace has called for more cash to prop up the Armed Forces.
In March he wrote to Chancellor Rishi Sunak warning spending is at risk of dropping below the 2 per cent Nato minimum.
Mr Wallace would use the additional funding to target specific capability gaps rather than upping the size of the Army – which is expected to shrink to just 72,500 by 2025.
In another dramatic intervention at the RUSI conference, the new head of the Army General Sir Patrick Sanders said the country faces a '1937 moment' over Vladimir Putin's 'brutal aggression'.
In a reference to the notorious policy of giving ground
