A former WW2 pilot who flew 50 raids over occupied Europe has blasted Labour’s plans to increase defence spending as “rubbish”.
Colin Bell served in the Second World War on operations as a Mosquito Bomber Pilot. (Image: Getty)
An RAF veteran who served in World War 2 has blasted Labour’s “rubbish” plans to increase defence spending. 104-year-old Colin Bell joined the RAF at 19 and carried out 50 bombing raids over Germany.
When asked about Labour’s plans to increase defence spending to 2.5% in this Parliament, the hero called on the Government to raise spending to match countries such as Poland and beyond. Appearing on Good Morning Britain alongside Veterans’ Minister and former Royal Marine Al Carns, Mr Bell said: “I think it is rubbish. We ought to be thinking in terms of what the Poles are spending who are spending over 4%.
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Veterans’ Minister Al Carns defended the government’s record on defence spending (Image: Getty)
“I would like to see 5% spent not when we can afford it but now.”
Veterans’ Minister Carns, who served until last July’s election, took the criticism in good spirit, joking that it would be wise to invite Mr Bell onto the government’s defence team, but defended the action the Government is taking.
He replied: “What I would say is that we have got 2.5% in this parliament, that is the biggest uplift in spending since the Cold War and we have said 3% in the next Parliament.
“We are moving progressively; we are in line with many other nations and we’re leading many European nations as well to try and drive more spending for defence to make sure our armed forces personnel get the kit and capability they require if they should be called upon in the future.”
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The UK is the ninth biggest spender as a percentage of GDP in NATO (Image: NATO)
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The UK is currently ninth in the list of highest defence spenders in NATO as a percentage of GDP, behind countries such as Denmark, Finland and Lithuania.
Poland, which shares a land border with Russia, currently leads the way, spending 4.12%, closely followed by Estonia and the United States.
Both Warsaw and Tallinn have increased their defence spending significantly since Vladimir Putin’s initial invasion of Crimea in 2014, at a point in time when both nations spent less than 2%.
The increase in defence spending of 2.5% comes at a time when the military is attempting to modernise its capabilities as tensions across Europe rise.
The Armed Forces are currently in the midst of a recruitment challenge, with army troop numbers set to drop below 70,000 this year for the first time since the Napoleonic Wars.
Other services have also consistently failed to meet recruitment targets over the last decade.
