AIBU to point out that the most important duty of the UK government is to maintain the defence of the country?

There is certainly room to improve the procurement process, but that's just one part of the problem. The BA is less than half its size in 1990. During the Cold War, the RN had over 100 capital ships. It now has 62. Decades of stagnant or reduced funding have left it a shell of what it needs to be.

Another step closer to a reform government.

Wow. That level of naivety reminds me of Corbyn's statement that if PM he would never use nuclear weapons.

Healey's resignation could hurt Starmer's authority even more than Streeting's resignation a fortnight ago, and the local government elections. It's very damaging.

Yep. He’s not a stirrer which makes his excoriating letter even more important.

Maybe but Putins behaviour and the USA threatening to walk away from NATO means we have to make it a greater priority right now.

Yes Thatcher's Government lowered income tax and raised VAT.

He’s well liked now. He was reviled by the opposition parties yesterday and will be again if he ever rejoins the cabinet.

That’s good to hear. I don’t actually know much about his political opinions because he keeps his powder dry, but I generally admire politicians who get on with their job quietly and don’t have an egotistical desire for the limelight. It certainly suggests a man who doesn’t jump on bandwagons and has an innate understanding of diplomacy.

Healey is well liked apparently. It’s going to hit both Starmer and Reeves.

I haven’t seen that. I’ve only just sat dorm after running around all morning. I usually listen to the radio in the car, but with the horrid news of late, I’ve been listening to music.

Good job we don't all think the same when our children and grandchildren live here.

Well we do need to increase our defence budget but where is the money coming from? Increased taxation will not help Labour’s re-election chances, especially as the increases will predominantly hit the ‘stretched middle’ who are starting to struggle and are sick of being seen as the go to when money is needed. If they attempt to reduce the ever increasing welfare budget there’ll be another backbench revolt.

This.

Plus the main duty of a government is to have a country worth defending, something the Conservatives singularly failed at.

All the Tories are saying that today. So is Jenrick. I bet they weren’t yesterday.

As I said, I fundamentally disagree.

In a modern globalised economy, we cannot be peasant farmers who build our own houses out of wattle and daub and heal ourselves with herbs.
The government has to make sure the population has food, housing, and healthcare, whether that is by providing these things directly in a socialist economy, subsidising them in a mixed economy, or regulating for their provision in a controlled capitalist economy.

I read somewhere (sorry don't have a link) that during the First World War, when they needed more soldiers, they were shocked at how malnourished and sick most of the working class men were. The government then realised they had to improve social conditions if they wanted fit soldiers.
That is the practical aspect.
The moral aspect is that it is quite simply the primary duty of the government of the nation to ensure the health and wellbeing of the population.

They have to be alive for that to happen! Stamer disagrees with you in any case. I should hope he does as the PM. Wish he'd put his words into action.

John Healey is the only member of the Cabinet I had any respect for. A man of intellect and integrity surrounded by imbeciles. I’d sooner have him as PM than Burnham.

The RAF has chartered private aircraft as well as military transport to evacuate/repatriate and move it's people and families as far back as the 1960s.

No, the job of a national government is to keep the country safe so the people who live in it can go about their business and earn the money to feed and house their families.

It's not only weapons
It's people to fight
Mostly young people, historically mostly (not all) from lower incomes.

There is something uncomfortable about the expectation (just taken for granted) that young people will be available to lay their lives down on the line by the same people who regularly threaten to move to another country if the income tax/capital gains tax on higher earners is raised at all.

If the country needs defending then be willing to pay for it. If it isn't urgent enough for someone with a passive income of over 100,000 to pay more capital gains tax on everything over 100,000 then it isn't urgent enough to cut spending on youth clubs, social services, carers allowance.

I'm not against reducing spending where there is waste or bloat or even to pay for infrastructure etc. But doing it as a way to increase military spending without taxing the wealthy doesn't sit right.

Really? It’s not going well for Labour is it. Surely you can see that.

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Fundamentally disagree.
The most important job of any national government is to make sure the population is fed, housed, and has healthcare.

Exactly how this is done is a matter for debate, but it is far more important than defence.

A very tough day indeed. Best thing Starmer can do is call a GE. It's the only way he can save the final humiliation he's about to face.