LONDON (AP) 鈥� U.K. Defense Secretary John Healey unexpectedly quit on Thursday, saying the government is unwilling to spend enough on the military at a time of 鈥渞ising threats.鈥� The resignation dealt another blow to embattled , who is already facing demands from Labour colleagues to step down.
Healey told Starmer in a letter that the government鈥檚 Defense Investment Plan falls 鈥渨ell short of what is required at this dangerous time.鈥�
Publication of the plan has been delayed amid reports of disagreement between the Defense Ministry and the Treasury.
Healey was followed out the door several hours later by Al Carns, a decorated war veteran who served as a prominent junior minister in the defense ministry. He said he could not defend 鈥渁 level of investment I know to be inadequate to the task.” Carns has been suggested as a possible contender in the anticipated contest to challenge Starmer鈥檚 leadership.
Starmer said in a letter to Healey that he was sorry to see him go, but insisted that the funding plan would provide 鈥渟ustainable and fair鈥� spending increases that would keep the U.K. safe.
Late Thursday the prime minister appointed Dan Jarvis, formerly the security minister, to the defense secretary post.
Critics say too little, too late
Starmer has pledged to boost U.K. defense spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2027 and 3% by 2035. But many in the military say that isn’t fast enough.
鈥淵ou have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats,鈥� Healey wrote in his resignation letter.
He said that the spending plan put forward by the Treasury, and presented to him on Monday, would see defense spending rise to just 2.68% in 2030, after hitting 2.6% next year.
Healey said that isn’t enough with growing demands on defense and British military commitments, citing , Russia’s all-out and threats from Moscow.
鈥淚 am now left with no other option than to submit my resignation,鈥� he said.
Gen. Richard Barrons, who helped lead a defense review that underpins the investment plan, said the government is 鈥渁ctively going backwards鈥� by refusing to fund its own review.
鈥淚t diminishes the U.K.鈥檚 standing within NATO, weakens our credibility with allies, and increases our vulnerability to the realities of 21st-century conflict,鈥� he said. 鈥淎llies and adversaries alike will be paying attention.鈥�
The government said that it was delivering 鈥渢he largest sustained boost to defense spending since the Cold War.鈥�
鈥淭his country is safer because of the decisions Keir Starmer has made and we will continue to act in our national interest,鈥� it said in a statement.
Healey is considered a safe pair of hands
Healey has been U.K. defense secretary since the Labour Party government was elected in July 2024, and he’s regarded as a capable and serious minister.
He has played a key role in bolstering international support for Ukraine and assembling a to help guarantee security if a ceasefire is reached. Healey also has helped spearhead a maritime security force that would help keep the Strait of Hormuz open to shipping if the Iran war ends.
The United Kingdom and other NATO member nations have faced pressure from U.S. President to increase military spending. Trump has long of the military alliance and complained that the United States provides security to European countries that don鈥檛 pull their weight.
The U.K. military is also seeking to reverse years of decline in the face of an increasingly assertive Russia, which fully invaded its neighbor Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, and increasingly tests the defenses of European nations with overt and covert activity.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, informed of Healey’s resignation by The Associated Press during a news conference in Brussels, said that Healey is someone 鈥淚 respect very much.鈥�
鈥淲hat we are seeing all over the alliance is countries increasing their defense investments, and of course it is not easy, because in the end there is always a trade-off with other expenses, which are also important,鈥� Rutte said.
Healey鈥檚 resignation is likely to further stoke talk that Starmer鈥檚 days as prime minister are numbered. Already bruised by a series of missteps since Labour returned to power less than two years ago, Starmer has faced calls within his party鈥檚 ranks to stand down.
In a sign of his waning authority, Starmer appears to have been unable to bridge the gap between Healey鈥檚 department and Treasury chief Rachel Reeves over defense spending.
Olivia O鈥橲ullivan, head of the U.K. in the World program at the Chatham House think tank, said the resignation 鈥渟ignificantly undermines Starmer,鈥� especially since the prime minister has had 鈥渁 relatively assured track record on defense and foreign affairs.鈥�
Greater Manchester Mayor is widely expected to challenge Starmer for the leadership, if he returns to Parliament in a June 18 special election.
Justin Crump, a former British tank commander who heads security consultancy Sibylline, said that Healey’s resignation 鈥渟hould not have been allowed to occur in a well-run government.鈥�
鈥淚t just further underlines a lack of control here, a lack of clarity, a lack of resolution, a gap between words and delivery,鈥� he said.
___
Mark Carlson in Brussels, and Pan Pylas and Brian Melley in London, contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
