Kiran Stacey

It'll create jobs.

And the prime minister has talked in glowing terms about this project, not least because the Americans and the Brits actually stole that contract away at the last minute from the French.

So that's been put at risk.

And then you've got other things going on in the world, which Keir Starmer has also made commitments on, whether that is to be part of the coalition of the willing, the forces that might get deployed in Ukraine, should there be peace there.

Or the prime minister has also promised to take part in any kind of peacekeeping force in the Straits of Hormuz, should that conflict end.

So defence sources will tell you that since the budget of last November, the Prime Minister has made a series of commitments on the world stage, but is now not willing to back that up with hard cash.

enormously damaging.

The fact of the resignation is one thing, but the actual wording of the statement is so blistering that it removes one central plank of Keir Starmer's entire argument for why he should remain in position.

Keir Starmer will go around if asked about his premiership and say, the world is a very uncertain place.

I have proved myself on the world stage.

I've proved that I can do the diplomacy and I'm committed to our defence.

This is not the time to start shaking things up.

His defence secretary has just resigned saying you are not as committed to defence as you claim and you're actually putting our security at risk because you're not willing to commit the money that we need.

He really put the boot in.

And then just for an added kind of double whammy here, he said the wording of this is quite interesting.

He said the Treasury has been unwilling and you have been unable to provide the funds needed.

Now, what that's saying is not only...

Hot sauce.

Yeah.

Not only is he saying that Keir Starmer is not willing to do it, but he's unable to overrule his chancellor.