UK Def Secy quits over low spending amid international threats:Says, ‘I am now left with no other option but to submit my resignation’

The British Defence Secretary John Healey unexpectedly resigned from his post on Thursday. According to a report by the news agency AP, the former official has claimed that the government is not willing to spend enough on the military at a time of rising threats.
Healey, in his statement, told the UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer that the government’s defence investment plan falls well short of what is required at this dangerous time.
Amid this controversy, the publication of the investment has been delayed over the disagreement between the defence ministry and the Treasury.
Why is his resignation unusual? Healey wrote in a resignation letter that, “You have been unable, and the Treasury has been unwilling, to commit the resources that the nation needs to defend the country at this time of rising threats. I am now left with no other option but to submit my resignation as your Defence Secretary”. In his letter further, “ Without a Defence Investment Plan (DIP) that meets the moment in this way, I am being forced to make decisions that would reduce the readiness of our Forces and increase the risk to personnel on operations, and could make the country less safe.”
Who is British Defence Secretary John Healey? Healey has been the UK Defence Chief since the Labour Party government was elected in July 2024 and is regarded as a capable and serious minister.
Starmer had pledged to boost UK defence spending to 2.5 per cent of gross domestic product by 2027 and 3 per cent by 2034. But many in the military say that is not fast enough.
The resignation is another blow to the embattled prime minister, who is already facing demands from Labour colleagues that he step down. Healey is the 6th minister to resign in a month According to a report by the BBC, Healey is the sixth minister in the UK to resign from his post within the month. Earlier, Health Secretary Wes Streeting had left his post on 14 May, and parliamentarian Jess Phillips had resigned 2 days ago. Additionally, junior ministers Miatta Fahnbulleh, Alex Davies-Jones, and Zubir Ahmed also resigned from the government on the same day. ​