# UK must spend more on defence, Streeting agrees with Trump

> The defence secretary backs US pressure for increased military spending, but faces pushback from Labour MPs worried about welfare.
- Title: UK must spend more on defence, Streeting agrees with Trump
- Summary: The defence secretary backs US pressure for increased military spending, but faces pushback from Labour MPs worried about welfare. Defence secretary Wes…
- Keywords: wes streeting, uk defence spending, donald trump, nato, labour party, andy burnham, john healey, politics, news, must, spend, more
- Source: The Independent — https://independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/uk-defence-spending-wes-streeting-donald-trump-nato-b3060890.html
- Published: 2026-10-03T19:23:42+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: wes streeting, uk defence spending, donald trump, nato, labour party, andy burnham, john healey, politics, news
## Streeting backs Trump on defence spending
Defence secretary Wes Streeting said Donald Trump is absolutely right to demand the UK increase military spending significantly after a Joint Expeditionary Force summit in Keflavik.

> president Trump and his administration have been absolutely right to demand more of the UK, more of Europe
## Labour splits over defence versus welfare
The push for expanded military budgets exposes a rift among Labour MPs over balancing defence expansion against welfare spending ahead of the Budget.
## Budget plan defers full spending target
Chancellor John Healey plans to fund the Defence Investment Plan in the immediate Budget, but a definitive blueprint to reach three percent spending by twenty thirty has been deferred to the twenty twenty-seven spending review.
## Streeting invokes Denis Healey's warning
Addressing military leaders, Streeting quoted former defence secretary Denis Healey's nineteen sixty-nine warning that cutting defence until security is imperilled leaves a nation with no houses, no hospitals, no schools.

> no houses, no hospitals, no schools, we have a heap of cinders
## Burnham warns against welfare cuts
Prime minister Andy Burnham has previously cautioned that national security cannot come at the expense of social security, resisting further military spending commitments.
## Officials explore private capital for defence
To address a four point seven billion pound gap in the Ministry of Defence's fifteen billion pound investment plan, British officials met Canadian prime minister Mark Carney in Liverpool to evaluate the Canadian-led Defence, Security and Resilience Bank.
## Key takeaway

Defence secretary Wes Streeting endorsed Donald Trump's demand that the UK increase military spending, aligning with NATO pressure on allies to shoulder larger financial burdens.