PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer is set to prioritise drones and autonomous systems over replacing the Royal Navy's ageing destroyers and frigates in his long-awaited Defence Investment Plan (Dip).
Funding for up to eight Type 83 destroyers and five Type 32 frigates will no longer be included in the plan, although some new crewed vessels are expected to be commissioned later, The Sunday Times reported.
The plan is expected to be unveiled as early as Tuesday, ahead of the Nato summit in Turkey next month.
Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis secured between £1 billion and £1.5 billion more than his predecessor John Healey, who resigned after a funding dispute with the Treasury.
The settlement is expected to be worth up to £15 billion, compared with the estimated £28 billion needed to modernise Britain's armed forces.
Andy Burnham, who is expected to succeed Starmer next month, has also approved the plan, according to The Times.
Former chief of the defence staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin warned that Britain was "looking like a laggard" on Nato defence commitments. He wrote: "War in Europe, hybrid attacks at home, crisis in the Middle East and the risk of conflict means the prime minister is in a quasi-wartime role." He also said: "Do not lead a 'wartime' cabinet that weakens our defences at a time of increasing danger."
Housing secretary Steve Reed defended the shift towards drones, saying: "We have to be ready for any future war, and what that will be like, not whatever the last war was like." He added: "We all see the threat that Russia in particular, but not only Russia, poses to our country."
The plan includes continued support for the GCAP Tempest fighter programme, the purchase of 12 F-35A fighter jets and £500 million for the UK Commando Force. However, the Ministry of Defence will delay some cadet recruitment and military accommodation projects to cut costs.
