Pm gives major speech amid 'new threats' in 'dangerous world' - watch live

Keir Starmer has warned the UK faces a "moment of danger and threat" that will require a response from everyone in the country. He said the UK must be ready for Russian aggression,

ominously stating: "Every part of society, every citizen of this country, has a role to play because we have to recognise that things have changed. "In the world of today, the

front line, if you like, is here." A long-awaited strategic defence review will be published today, with the Government commiting to build 12 new nuclear-powered attack submarines and

invest £15billion in its warhead programme. 10:39Dave Burke STARMER '100% CONFIDENT' CASH WILL BE AVAILABLE The PM said he was "100% confident" that cash would be

available for the commitments made in the strategic defence review. Mr Starmer, who has refused to guarantee that defence spending will reach 3% of gross domestic product, said the review

was based on the 2.5% target which will be met from April 2027. He said: "When we set the terms of reference for this review, we set it on the premise that we will be spending 2.5% of

GDP on our defence. Obviously, since then, what we've done is then put the date on that - 2027-2028 - the highest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War, a date I

think that was earlier than some people thought it would be, but also set out that ambition to hit 3% in the next parliament. "So I'm 100% confident that this can be delivered

because that was baked in from the very start of the review as one of the first conversations we had with the reviewers." 10:33Dave Burke AT LEAST SIX NEW MUNITIONS FACTORS AND WARHEAD

BOOST TO CREATE OVER 1,000 JOBS At least six new munitions factories and a £15billion investment in nuclear warheads have been announced by the PM. He said: "I can announce today that

we going to build at least six new munitions factories in the United Kingdom, generating over 1,000 jobs," the Prime Minister said in Glasgow. The £15billion investment in a

"sovereign warhead programme" will be "part of the historic renewal of our nuclear deterrent as the ultimate guarantor of our safety and our security", he added. Mr

Starmer had earlier thanked the authors of the strategic defence review, saying: "What you've delivered is a blueprint to make Britain safer and stronger. A battle-ready,

armour-clad nation with the strongest alliances, and the most advanced capabilities, equipped for the decades to come." 10:29KEY EVENT STARMER REVEALS THREE MAJOR CHANGES IN DEFENCE

STRATEGY The Prime Minister has said the strategy is made up of three major steps. He said: "First, we are moving to war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces.

"When we are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, the most effective way to deter them is to be ready, and frankly, to show them that we're ready to

deliver peace through strength." The second change is that the Government will adopt a "Nato-first" stance towards defence so that everything it does adds to the strength of

the alliance. Sir Keir added: "Third, we will innovate and accelerate innovation at a wartime pace, so we can meet the threats of today and of tomorrow, as the fastest innovator in

Nato." Earlier the PM told the BBC's Today Programme: " Russia has shown in recent weeks that it's not serious about peace, and we have to be ready." He said the

review will focus on Britain's readiness for war, stating: "The world has changed and we are entering a new era when it comes to defence and security. "I think that's a

common feeling across Europe and more broadly there is greater instability on defence and security than there has been for many, many years, and greater threats, and that's obviously

having a direct impact back into the United Kingdom. Hence the review." 10:26Dave Burke EX-ARMY CHIEF SAYS DEFENCE DELAY IS 'LIKE ASKING HITLER NOT TO ATTACK' Lord Dannatt,

former head of the British Army, said vague commitments to defence spending are like asking Hitler in 1938 "please don't attack us until 1946 because we're not going to be

ready". He told Times Radio: "Just moving to 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2027 does not cut the mustard in any shape or form. And this rather vague commitment to move to 3 per cent by

the end of the next parliament, 2034, I mean, it just doesn't stack up. It's a little bit like saying in 1938 to Adolf Hitler, please don't attack us till 1946, because

we're not going to be ready. Well, frankly, if we'd behaved like that, we wouldn't be speaking English this morning, would we?" 10:24Dave Burke EVERY CITIZEN IN THE UK

HAS A ROLE TO PLAY, SAYS STARMER The Prime Minister said that every UK citizen has a role to play in the new dangerous times. He said: "Every part of society, every citizen of this

country, has a role to play because we have to recognise that things have changed. "In the world of today, the front line, if you like, is here." 10:21KEY EVENT KEIR STARMER WARNS

OF 'MOMENT OF DANGER AND THREAT' Keir Starmer has warned the UK faces a "moment of danger and threat" amid growing Russian aggression. Speaking in Scotland, he said

Vladimir Putin's actions must not go unchallenged as he unveiled a long-awaited defence plan - which he said would make the country an "armour-clad nation". The Prime Minister

said: "We have to recognise that the world has changed... the threat we face is more serious, more imminent, more unpredictable than at any point since the Cold War." The PM said

the Strategic Defence Review will focus on "warfighting readiness" - saying Britain must prepare for war if it wants to avoid it. Earlier the PM told the BBC's Today

Programme: " Russia has shown in recent weeks that it's not serious about peace, and we have to be ready." He said the review will focus on Britain's readiness for war,

stating: "The world has changed and we are entering a new era when it comes to defence and security. "I think that's a common feeling across Europe and more broadly there is

greater instability on defence and security than there has been for many, many years, and greater threats, and that's obviously having a direct impact back into the United Kingdom.

Hence the review." Click here for the full story 09:24Dave Burke PM ACCUSED OF 'LACK OF URGENCY' OVER DEFENCE SPENDING The Lib Dems have accused the PM of a "concerning

lack of urgency" on defence spending. Following his interview on the Today Programme, Sir Ed Davey said: "Keir Starmer is showing a concerning lack of urgency on reaching 3%.

"With Putin waging war, Trump undermining NATO and conflicts raging, we must deliver for our Armed Forces and Britain's security in an increasingly unstable world. Anything less

would be a dereliction of duty. “I once again urge the Prime Minister to convene cross-party talks to allow us to get to 3% as soon as possible, and faster than 2034." 09:21Dave Burke

WHAT DID KEIR STARMER SAY ABOUT 3% DEFENCE SPENDING PLEDGE? Mr Starmer refused to guarantee that defence spending would reach 3% of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2034, saying it was an

"ambition". The Government has promised to spend 2.5% of GDP from April 2027 with a goal of reaching 3% in the next parliament. The Prime Minister told BBC Radio 4's Today

programme: "What I said at the election in 2024 is that we would get to 2.5% and I was pressed time and again 'what precise date' and I said 'as soon as I can be

absolutely clear with a firm date, a firm commitment that we will keep to', because I had seen the previous government make commitments about this percent or that percent with no plan

behind it, I'm not going down that road. "Therefore, what you can take from this is - yes - that 3% but I am not, as the Prime Minister of a Labour Government, going to make a

commitment as to the precise date, until I couldn't be sure precisely where the money is coming from, how we can make good on that commitment. Because I don't believe in

performative fantasy politics, and certainly not on defence and security." 08:53Dave Burke PUTIN MUST COMMIT TO UNCONDITIONAL CEASEFIRE SAYS MINISTER Defence minister Luke Pollard has

said Putin should be committing an unconditional ceasefire. He said the US and Europe are putting huge pressure on the Russian despot. He told LBC: "Yeah, I mean the pressure that

President Trump and European leaders, including the Prime Minister, is putting on Putin needs to be clear. He should be committing to an unconditional ceasefire. "That is what Ukraine

have committed to. It's what President Putin should be doing, because the ability to stop this war sits firmly in the Kremlin." Referring to a "daring" Ukrainian raid on

Russia over the weekend he said: "We know that those bombers that Ukraine hit were being used to strike civilian targets, the cities of Ukraine, the civilian populations. That daring

raid, I think, for me, underlines why we need to invest in new drone technology, because we're seeing the way that Ukraine are using drones, that’s fundamentally changing warfare as we

know it. That's why the defence review sets out more on drones." 08:31KEY EVENT PM ISSUES WARNING ABOUT PUTIN'S AGGRESSION The Prime Minister has issued a fresh warning about

Vladimir Putin. He said the Russian tyrant's actions show the need to get the UK on a war footing. He told the Today Programme: "Russia has shown in recent weeks that it's not

serious about peace, and we have to be ready." 08:25Dave Burke PM LASHES OUT AT 'FANTASY PERFORMATIVE POLITICS' OVER 3% SPENDING VOW The PM has yet again refused to say when

the Government will hit 3% of GDP spending on defence. He told the BBC's Today Programme that he doesn't believe in "performative fantasy politics". Mr Starmer said:

"I'm not, as the Prime Minister of a Labour Government, going to make a commitment until I can be sure where the money is coming from... "Because I don't believe in

performative fantasy polics and certainly not in defence and security." 08:18Dave Burke 'WE CAN'T IGNORE THE THREAT RUSSIA POSES' SAYS PM Pressed on whether he would be

prepared to sent British troops to war in Europe, the PM said "I hope not". Mr Starmer said the Government is pushing ahead to make sure it is ready for war amid Russian

aggression. He said: "To make sure that isn't the case we need to prepare." He continued: "We can't ignore the threat that Russia poses, we've seen what

happened in Ukraine." 08:16KEY EVENT KEIR STARMER WARNS WORLD HAS ENTERED A 'NEW ERA' Keir Starmer has said the world has entered a "new era" with more threats than

there have been for "many many years". The PM told the BBC's Today Programme: "The world has changed and we are entering a new era when it comes to defence and security.

"I think that's a common feeling across Europe and more broadly there is greater instability on defence and security than there has been for many, many years, and greater threats,

and that's obviously having a direct impact back into the United Kingdom. Hence the review." 07:58Dave Burke UK 'NOT AT WAR, BUT WE'RE NOT AT PEACE' Defence minister

Luke Pollard has said the UK is "certainly not at war at the moment, but it's also true that we're certainly not at peace". He said action was needed to prevent

conflict, telling BBC Breakfast: I think all your viewers will have seen the appalling scenes from Ukraine over recent years. They'll be aware that the world is more dangerous.

They'll be aware that to secure our freedom and our economic prosperity, we have to invest in our national security. "It's the first duty of any government to keep our country

safe, but it's also the first mission of this Labour Government to grow our economy by investing in defence. We're creating jobs in every single part of United Kingdom." He

went on: "I don't want us to go to war. I want us to deter aggression. That is precisely what the defence review sets out to do today." 07:49KEY EVENT WHAT IS EXPECTED IN THE

STRATEGIC DEFENCE REVIEW? In response to the Strategic Defence Review, the Government's commitments will include: Getting the armed forces to a stage where it would be ready to fight a

war Boosting weapons and equipment stockpiles and making sure there is capacity to scale up production if needed in a crisis or war £1.5billion to set up at least six munitions factories

Buying up to 7,000 UK-built long-range weapons in a move due to support 800 defence jobs Setting up a new cyber command and investing £1billion in digital capabilities More than £1.5billion

of additional funding to repair and renew armed forces housing Boosting recruitment for Britain's armed forces - with the number of cadets increasing by 30% 07:39Dave Burke QUESTIONS

OVER LABOUR'S 3% DEFENCE SPENDING COMMITMENT A minister has again refused to guarantee that the Government will spend 3% of the UK's economic output on defence in the next

Parliament. Labour frontbencher Luke Pollard said the commitment would be dependent on the state of the ecomomy. It comes after Defence Secretary John Healey yesterday could not confirm that

the Treasury would fund the plan to bring spending up to 3% of GDP by 2034. Asked on Monday morning whether the 3% commitment remained a guarantee, defence minister Luke Pollard told Times

Radio: "Well, we've set out that we are spending 2.5% by April 2027, with the ambition to spend 3% in the next parliament, when economic conditions allow." Pressed about the

commitment, Mr Pollard added: "Well I've got no doubt that we will get to 3% in the next parliament, as I've said a number of times." The defence minister said the

strategic defence review, a wide-ranging investigation into the UK's defence being published on Monday, is the "biggest transformation of our armed forces in 100 years". He

said: "It seeks to learn the lessons from the war in Ukraine, refresh our capabilities, invest in our people, and underscore that increased defence spending up to 2.5% of our GDP by

April 2027 is an engine for growth." 07:30KEY EVENT PM TO ANNOUNCE MASSIVE EXPANSION OF UK SUBMARINE FLEET Keir Starmer will today announce major plans to almost double the UK’s

nuclear-powered submarine fleet. The Prime Minister will set out the building of 12 new attack submarines as part of the AUKUS programme, a security partnership between Australia, the UK and

the US. He will also announce a major £15billion investment in the UK’s nuclear warhead programme. The PM will make the announcements as he unveils the Government's new Strategic

Defence Review (SDR). The externally-led review is expected to recommend the Armed Forces move to warfighting readiness to deter the growing threats faced by the UK. The UK currently has

five Astute class attack submarines, which are on track to become a fleet of seven warships in the near future. These will be replaced one by one with the new SSN-AUKUS attack submarines

from the late 2030s. A further five new submarines will take the total to 12. A major expansion of the industrial capabilities at Barrow and Raynesway, Derby, will see a new submarine built

every 18 months in the future. These will all be built by the UK and operated by the Royal Navy. Click here for the full story