'We're on the foothills of a new cold war': Britain has become complacent over security, says defence committee chairman
6 March 2023, 20:08
Britain has become complacent over security when it is "on the foothills of a new cold war", defence committee chairman Tobias Ellwood has said.
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Mr Ellwood said Britain needed to ask itself "what roles are we going to play" in the next decade as it faces more challenges with its defence.
Speaking on Tonight with Andrew Marr, the chairman of the Defence Select Committee said war in Ukraine should not be the only concern when it comes to UK security.
"We’re on the foothills of a new cold war and Britain needs to ask itself what role are we going to play in rallying the international community to stand up to the geopolitical challenges that’s going to make this next decade very, very bumpy indeed," he said.
Mr Ellwood added that Britain, along with several other NATO countries had become complacent since the last cold war.
Read more: Defence Secretary Ben Wallace accuses Prince Harry of ‘boasting’ about killing 25 Taliban fighters
Tobias Ellwood: 'We are on the foothills of a new cold war'
“I stress, we’re now entering a new era of security so we need to upgrade out defence policy,” he continued.
“Our economy and our security are now one and the same thing.
"If you don’t defend our security it affects our economy so there’ll be less money in the pot for all these other government departments."
A major boost in defence spending is expected as part of the Chancellor's Budget next week.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said he is "pretty confident" his department will be given the investment boost it requires.
The Cabinet minister lobbied Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in public for extra cash for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to help deal with inflationary pressures and the costs of backing Ukraine in its battle against Russia's invading forces.
Mr Wallace wanted up to £11 billion extra over the next two years but, according to The Times, Mr Hunt has agreed a rise of closer to £4-5 billion as part of his Budget package.
