Reform UK Defence Policies
The first duty of Government is to Protect Our Freedoms, and to do that, we need Armed Forced and Military strength.
Britain has the best Military Personnel in the world, and yet the Army is now at its smallest size in 300 years. People are leaving the services three times faster than they are joining.
And the ones who are leaving are experienced and well trained, whilst the ones who are joining are obviously raw recruits. Consequently, the military is being degraded by Bad Political Decisions.
In addition, many veterans feel they have been abandoned by the politicians. We see many ex-servicemen living on the streets. Other veterans face unjust legal claims for actions they took decades ago under orders from their Political and Military Leaders.
We Need to Reform UK Defence. If we want our armed forces to defend us, we must defend them.
Reform UK Policies on Defence
Here is how we do it:
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Increased Defence Spending to 2.5% of GDP
Defence has to be paid for, and we will increase the size and the capacity of our forces, ensuring that our military can always successfully fulfil their duties.
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Increase Pay
Reform UK will increase basic pay across our enforces in order to attract new recruits and retain the personnel we already have.
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New Armed Forces Justice Bill
Our servicemen are being hounded by lawyers who are bringing civil law and human rights cases against military personnel for actions that were taken decades ago under orders. This has led to many injustices for our retired military personnel.
We will stop this injustice.
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New Dedicated Ministerial Department for Veterans
Our veterans need to be cared for, and at the moment, many are not.
So, Reform UK will create a dedicated ministerial department to look after their best interests.
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Regenerate Britain’s Defence
By means of tax incentives we will encourage growth in the UK defence industry. Ideally, we want to be self-sufficient in military terms.
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Reform Defence Procurement
Defence procurement has been awful over recent years, and many millions of pounds have been wasted. We will launch a joint acquisition corps to ensure world-class defence procurement.
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Education for Military Personnel Leaving the Service
Working in the military is a unique context, and when people leave and join civilian life, they often feel ill-equipped.
Reform UK will introduce free education, both during and after military service, which is vital to ensure a successful transition from military back into civilian life.
Defence of the Nation is necessary to Keep Us Free. We owe it to the people who protect us to ensure they have the equipment and the funding necessary to do their job:
And we must support them when they leave the military and re-enter civilian life.
These are Reform UK defence policies.