Holding a review before deciding how to increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP is "damaging for the armed forces", the shadow defence secretary has said. James Cartlidge, who was appointed to the shadow cabinet on Monday said: What we've got from Labour today is dither and delay, whereas Keir Starmer has the opportunity to be firm, instead I'm afraid he has been indecisive." Report by Covellm. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn
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00:00We went into the election with a fully funded plan to get to 2.5%.
00:03We were very clear we think that's the right thing for the country and for our armed forces.
00:07And I'm very disappointed today that we understand it will be at least a year
00:11before Labour even set out how and when they're going to get to 2.5%.
00:14I personally think that will be damaging for the armed forces.
00:17They needed to know today with some certainty when we're going to get to 2.5%.
00:22The chiefs who run our armed forces, if they don't know when 2.5% will happen,
00:26they can't plan and there's some really big decisions
00:28that they're going to have to make pretty urgently.
00:30And I think it will be difficult for them.
00:32What we've got from Labour today is just dither and delay.
00:35Whereas Keir Starmer had the opportunity to be firm,
00:38instead I'm afraid he's been undecisive.