Brits to be advised to ‘put together for warfare’ as Army digs out UK assault emergency plans
Britain is reviving its Cold War war book as chiefs warn of rising threats, preparing civilians, industry and forces for a rapid shift to wartime footing. It’s basically preparing everyone for a transition to war
Britain is preparing for a potential war(Image: Getty Images)
Britain is reviving its Cold War-era Government War Book to prepare the nation for potential war.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton, head of the Armed Forces, confirmed the plans would be brought back to life, telling Sky News: “I think that’s right.” The updated document will ready the military, police, hospitals and industry for a transition to war – echoing a system first created during the First World War.
Sir Richard said the new version would require people to think differently about resilience, drawing on lessons from the Cold War but “in a modern context, with a modern society, with modern infrastructure”. The Cabinet Office is spearheading the effort to rebuild the top-secret framework, once credited with making Britain one of the world’s best-prepared nations for conflict.
A 1976 copy – hand-typed and bound with string – set out stark measures including shutting schools, clearing hospitals, rationing food and even storing national treasures.
But the system was expensive and quietly abandoned by the early 2000s after the Cold War ended. Since then, successive Conservative and Labour governments have been accused of underfunding the Armed Forces.
Now ministers have pledged to increase defence spending from just over 2% of GDP to 3.5% by 2035. However, a crucial 10-year Defence Investment Plan has still not been published. Former Defence Secretary Sir Ben Wallace has warned of “Treasury tricks” inflating the budget.
Defence Secretary John Healey would not confirm whether the plan will be released by this summer, leaving industry waiting for promised funding.
Sir Richard suggested the delay is down to securing proper backing, saying: “What I want is a defence investment plan that is properly funded and delivers what we want. If that takes a bit longer, I’d rather have something that works and we can deliver.”
Protecting key infrastructure such as power stations and water supplies is central to the overhaul.
“I talked before Christmas of the need that when we think about renewing our water infrastructure or electricity or transport infrastructure, to think about the threat of action from an adversary that is above the threshold of war, not just a hybrid threat,” he said.
“And think about how we build in that resilience as we renew it and that requires making some different choices and different priorities and that work that the Cabinet Office is doing across the whole of Government is something that I really welcome.”
He also warned the public must be prepared after decades of peace.
He added: “That requires us to educate ourselves and help the population understand some of those threats and help them understand what they can do to support the nation and potentially support the Armed Forces.”
For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters.
