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Nigel Farage has shared what he calls the “brutal truth” about Labour, criticising the Government’s response to the escalating conflict in the Middle East.
He pledged that Reform UK would boost defence spending by eliminating Net Zero policies.
Speaking in central London, the Reform leader aimed at 10 Downing Street after Keir Starmer declined to commit Britain to offensive military action against Iran and initially resisted allowing the United States to use RAF bases for its operations.
Farage had previously urged the Prime Minister to “do all we can” to support US and Israeli actions against Tehran, a sentiment echoed by his deputy, Richard Tice.
However, the Clacton MP later softened his position, stating that Britain should not join the war because the UK “certainly can’t offer anything of any value to the Americans or the Israelis.”
In response to the conflict, Reform has vowed to increase defence spending to rebuild Britain’s armed forces, arguing that the war has highlighted weaknesses in the country’s military capabilities.
The debate intensified after an Iranian-made drone targeted RAF Akrotiri early in the conflict. Following this, Starmer announced that the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon would be deployed to help defend the base.
However, the Government faced criticism when the vessel remained docked in Portsmouth for nearly a week before setting sail for the eastern Mediterranean. Six days later, it had only reached Gibraltar, raising concerns about Britain’s readiness to respond to the crisis.
During a tense exchange with GB News, chief political correspondent Katherine Forster pressed Reform on where the funding for increased defence spending would come from, pointing out that the party had argued that Britain should help secure the Strait of Hormuz despite the current limitations facing the armed forces.
She said: “You’ve said that we ought to help in the Strait of Hormuz, but we can’t because our Armed Forces are so denuded.
“You’ve talked about the need to increase defence spending. How would a Reform Government pay for that? It’s going to need huge amounts of money.”
The Reform UK leader said: “Look, the brutal truth is that if you strip out the things that are not directly involved with defence or with providing equipment, you know, for the budget for next year, our defence spending is going to be about 2.2 per cent of our overall budget.
“That is historically incredibly low.
I really think the fact that the French Navy, the Greek Navy, and even the Spaniards have sent naval vessels to defend British sovereign territory in Cyprus, and that it’s going to take us three weeks to get a single vessel there.
“If that’s not a wake up call for a changing and a shifting of our priorities, I don’t know what is.”
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