The likely future British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has pledged to strengthen the UK's military capabilities and defense industry, believing that an increasingly unstable international context requires a renewed focus on "hard power".
Burnham, who is expected to succeed Keir Starmer as Prime Minister on July 20, wants defense investments to also serve to revitalize industry in the country's most vulnerable regions. He intends to reduce the UK's reliance on foreign-purchased military equipment by promoting domestic production.
In a column published by The TimesHe asserts that it is necessary to "rebuild our military power for a new era," judging that current equipment was designed for a strategic context that is now outdated.
The Labour leader believes that several recent events demonstrate the urgent need to strengthen British defence, including the war between the United States, Israel and Iran, the conflict in Ukraine and the cyberattack that targeted Jaguar Land Rover last year, which is estimated to have cost the British economy nearly £2 billion.
Andy Burnham also argues for greater transparency in the use of military spending and for a reduction in dependence on foreign suppliers, which he considers a key national and economic security issue.
His foreign policy positions, however, remain largely unknown. Before returning to Parliament last month, Burnham served as Mayor of Greater Manchester for almost ten years and never held a ministerial portfolio related to defense or foreign affairs.
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