Starmer needs to get serious and fund our Royal Navy and armed forces - it's insulting to Portsmouth not to

Caving into the Treasury’s bidding and not properly supporting our armed forces will cause grave consequences. Many military families would have been full of hope that things may finally change.

After years of underfunding defence during Tory austerity, Labour promised to be different. The Strategic Defence Review set out bold aims for the future.

Exciting new autonomous technologies, more efficient ways of working, and clear signals of the threats the country faces were outlined to the public. The government accepted all 62 recommendations, and then the waiting began. Autumn passed and the Defence Investment Plan (Dip) was nowhere near ready.

Months went by, and the reports of billion-pound shortfalls and political infighting filled our newsfeeds. Insistent statements were made that funding will be there, but after John Healey’s scathing letter to prime minister Sir Keir Starmer, it’s clear that essential support will not be coming.

An underwhelming programme appears to have been agreed, which looks to be beset with cuts and inefficiencies. A half-baked Dip by a half-baked prime minister teetering on the brink of failure.

Starmer’s tenure will only be remembered for a lack of fully-fledged commitment. Great achievements like boosting armed forces pay by 14 per cent in two years and reforming dilapidated military housing will be forgotten. Arguments of the Tories hollowing out defence will fall on deaf ears.

Instead of grappling with the Treasury and taking control, he has become a slave to it. The £13.5bn uplift is not enough for transformation, and the hope for raising spending to three per cent of GDP by 2030 has disappeared.

This is a travesty, and I applaud John Healey and Al Carns for not putting their names to something that damages our armed forces. The Royal Navy is struggling to cope with its shrinking fleet at a time when waterways are blockaded and enemies like Russia are expanding their military presence.

The Army is struggling to retain manpower and is beset by wasteful and harmful procurement - don’t get me started on the embarrassing Ajax armoured vehicle programme - and the RAF is crying out for more advanced capabilities.

All this means an unstable world for us to live in, where threats of cyber attacks and subterfuge to our infrastructure are all very real. Worldwide events will continue to cripple our society, and we’ll be powerless to do anything about it.

If you believe there isn’t enough money, find it. Raise taxes, or make cuts in the right places elsewhere. I and so many others don’t care how it's done. It needs to happen.

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The military is the ultimate public service. Brave men and women are deployed hundreds of miles away from their family and friends in the most dangerous environments in the world. They keep us safe and make countless sacrifices.

This embarrassing Dip is an insult to them, our veterans who served before them, and the city of Portsmouth itself. Don’t take my word for it, listen to those who know.

Mr Healey said the prime minister and the Treasury have been ‘unwilling’ to commit the resources the nation needs to defend against rising threats - with himself being “forced to make decisions” that “increase the risk to personnel on operations, and could make the country less safe”.

Mr Carns, a decorated Royal Marines Commando, said he has spoken to top brass who will be asked to do more with less. He described the level of investment as “inadequate”, adding that “a serious country funds its defence to meet the threat it actually faces, not the threat it wishes it faced”.

These damning statements, among many others, make things clear. Our armed forces will not be getting much-needed support, at a time when they need it most. One day I hope those in power will be serious about supporting the ultimate public service. Right now, they’re refusing to be bold, and are acting like cowards.