30. September 2025

UK lacks strategy to fend off military invasion, MPs warn in scathing report

The UK has no plan to defend itself or its overseas territories from military attack, according to a report by MPs.

In a scathing evaluation, external, the Defense Committee stated that the UK is “far from” where it needs to be to protect itself and its allies—especially at a time when security threats to Europe are “significant.

The report found that the UK is failing to meet its NATO obligations and falling “well short of its claimed leadership position.

The report was published as the Ministry of Defense (MoD) identified potential locations for six new munitions factories, part of a strategy to boost domestic defense production.

In June, Defense Secretary John Healey announced plans to put the UK on “war-fighting readiness,” including £1.5bn to support the construction of new munitions factories, which will be built by private contractors.

However, after an 11-month inquiry, the Defense Committee warned that the UK and its European NATO allies remain overly reliant on the U.S. and are not investing enough in their own defense capabilities.

Committee Chair Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi said: “Putin’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, unrelenting disinformation campaigns, and repeated incursions into European airspace mean we cannot afford to ignore the threats.

He added that the committee had “repeatedly heard concerns about the UK’s ability to defend itself against attack.

The report’s specific recommendations included calling on the government to accelerate industrial reform and make “readiness” a key objective.

The committee also criticized Europe’s heavy reliance on the U.S. in critical areas such as “intelligence, satellites, troop transportation, and air-to-air refueling.

It noted that the UK has “next to no” integrated air and missile defense systems, and pointed to recent drone incursions into European airspace as an example of how new technologies can threaten both military targets and civilian populations.

The report was particularly critical of what it described as the “glacial pace” of promised improvements to civil defense and resilience, stating that the UK may be failing to meet its NATO Article 3 obligations, external to “maintain and develop individual and collective capacity to resist armed attack.

Mr. Dhesi said the government also needs to fulfill its promise to better communicate with the public about “the level of threat we face and what to expect in the event of conflict.

“Wars are not won by generals alone—they require the entire population to support the Armed Forces and play their part,” he added.

Earlier this year, the government announced that UK defense spending will rise to 3% of GDP by 2034 at the latest.

In a Wednesday speech, Mr. Healey is expected to announce plans to restart the production of energetics—explosives, pyrotechnics, and propellants—in the UK, after two decades of sourcing these materials from overseas.

The MoD is assessing 13 potential sites for the new factories and has named the regions where they could be located.

There are three possible sites in Scotland—in Dumfriesshire, Ayrshire, and Grangemouth, Stirlingshire.

In England, eight sites have been earmarked—in Teesside, Cumbria, Shropshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Essex, Worcestershire, and Hampshire—and two in Wales—in Monmouthshire and Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire.

The government aims to have at least six new factories operational by the next election in 2029, with work on the first expected to begin next year.

Mr. Healey is also set to announce the opening of two new drone factories this week in Plymouth and Swindon.

“We are making defense an engine for growth, unambiguously backing British jobs and skills as we make the UK better prepared to fight and better able to deter future conflicts,” the Defense Secretary will say.

“This is the path that delivers national and economic security.”

UK will not tolerate Chinese spying, minister says after MI5 alert

Defense plan will ensure UK is ready for war, minister says

Defense review to send ‘message to Moscow’, says Healey

Police bullied me into admitting murder, says man wrongly jailed for 38 years

UK inflation rate falls for first time since March to 3.6%

‘Scotland cash in almost 30 years of glorious failure as dreams come true’

‘It would have been better if they’d killed me’: A forgotten war destroying women’s lives

On the front line of Europe’s standoff with Russia’s sanction-busting shadow fleet

Is this what spying by China can look like?

First kiss dates back 21 million years, say scientists

Epstein saga reveals Republican rifts - and the power of Trump’s base

MI5’s ‘Chinese spies’ alert and Trump defends MBS

‘I worked, I paid taxes - then the bank took my home’

Baby Shark: How a 90-second clip created a $400m business

Tech Decoded newsletter: Follow the world’s top tech stories and trends - sign up

Police bullied me into admitting murder, says man wrongly jailed for 38 years

‘I worked, I paid taxes - then the bank took my home’

Our son’s about to turn three - finding new childcare has left us at our wits’ end

MI5’s ‘Chinese spies’ alert and Trump defends MBS

Hotel adverts banned over misleadingly cheap rooms

Release of Epstein files awaits Trump’s signoff after clearing Congress

Is this what spying by China can look like?

‘Scotland cash in almost 30 years of glorious failure as dreams come true’

Tech giant seeking $1.7bn from Mike Lynch’s estate after yacht death

Epstein saga reveals Republican rifts - and the power of Trump’s base

Watch Nicôle Lecky’s provocative new drama

Which celebrity will stand the heat in the kitchen?

Antiques experts search for their latest treasures

Jools Holland celebrates Walking to New Orleans