
An MBDA Brimstone training weapon is pictured at the MBDA missile factory in Stevenage, on May 31, 2025, ahead of the UK Government's upcoming Strategic Defence Review. AFP
The factories are part of a wider push to boost defence capacity in response to Russia’s war with Ukraine and growing global instability.
The review, due to be published on Monday, will assess the threats facing the UK and outline plans to reinforce its military posture, with a focus on munitions, artificial intelligence and high-tempo warfare.
In February, Prime Minister Keir Starmer committed to increasing defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, up from the current 2.3 percent. Starmer has also pledged to raise it to 3 percent in the next parliament, due around 2029.
The review, led by former NATO secretary general George Robertson, recommends establishing an "always on" production model that would allow weapons manufacturing to scale up rapidly in times of conflict.
It also calls for laying “the industrial foundations for an uplift in munitions stockpiles to meet the demand of high-tempo warfare,” the Ministry of Defence said.
The government said it would procure 7,000 domestically built long-range weapons and spend £6 billion on munitions this parliamentary term. The investment is expected to create and support 1,800 jobs.
“The hard-fought lessons from Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine show a military is only as strong as the industry that stands behind them,” Defence Secretary John Healey said.
“We are strengthening the UK's industrial base to better deter our adversaries and make the UK secure at home and strong abroad.”
Healey also told The Times that Britain would hit the 3 percent of GDP defence spending target in the next parliament. To help fund the increase, the government plans to cut the overseas aid budget.
According to The Guardian, the review will warn that Britain is entering “a new era of threat” driven by the rise of drones and artificial intelligence on the battlefield.
It will describe the “immediate and pressing” danger posed by Russia, and highlight threats from China, Iran and North Korea.
Robertson has referred to the four states as a “deadly quartet” that are “increasingly working together”.
This week, the government also pledged over £1 billion to enhance battlefield technology, including AI and cybersecurity. In that announcement, Healey said the UK was “facing daily cyber-attacks on this new frontline” and warned that “ways of warfare are rapidly changing.”
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